Mystery/Thriller Reading Friends discussion

Spoilers welcome for chapters 8-11. The first to post please briefly summarize to guide the discussion.

Chapter 8
After Sunday dinner Jean Louise follows Atticus and Hank to the Courthouse and finds them with what appears to be every man in town at the Citizen's Council meeting. They are both seated at the head table with a vile man spewing bigoted filth.
Sitting unseen in the balcony where she sat and observed Atticus as a child this leaves Jean Louise feeling abruptly disconnected from everything she thought she knew, disillusioned and very sad.

Chapter 9
A look back chapter with Jean Louise's deep love and respect for her father very apparent. Atticus doesn't marry until he is forty after he supported his brother Jack's higher education. Their son Jem is born two years later and four years later Jean Louise follows. At forty-six Atticus is a widower and raising two young children after his beloved wife dies of a sudden heart attack. With Calpurnia helping and mothering them as well, they thrive on his steady love and respect.

Chapter 10
Born colorblind. As she recalls the scene in the courthouse at the Citizen's council meeting it leaves Jean Louise reeling and nauseous. Dill is a memory; as with Jem, what would life be like if they were still there? This is a frequent passing thought. Dill is in Europe and not likely to return, Jem no longer alive. Her stomach hurts. She admits to going to the meeting and tells Aunt Alexandra to tell Hank she is indisposed when he calls on her for dinner that night.
Deep thoughts about what she has observed, but focused too personally to see the bigger picture.
Part four
Chapter 11
Scout's young exposure to a garbled version of the birds and the bees as espoused by other more worldly girls in the community leads her to nine months of terror that she is pregnant from being french kissed. The tension and build-up as she suffers for this long length of time and has determined to kill herself rather than face the shame has the reader on the edge of her seat.
We see a side of Hank as an older rescuer and Atticus and Calpurnia not quite understanding the depth of Scout's alarm but being sweetly supportive when Scout's naive innocence of the ways of the birds and the bees is misunderstood in a time and place where that innocence didn't stop bad things from happening, but kept people from talking about it.

I found the polar opposites of idyllic childhood memories juxtaposed with the rude awakening of the harsh reality of the racist world she had not truly seen before as stark and unsettling (for both Jean Louise and for myself as I read). The way the two views are presented through Scout's (childhood) and Jean Louise's (adult) recollections is very well done.

A lot to process in these chapters! I could actually feel Jean Louise's nausea as she watched the townsmen, and especially Atticus and Henry at the meeting. It is confusing, because if Atticus is there as a willing participant, it doesn't jive with the Atticus of TKAM. Knowing that events such as this did in fact occur during this time, and Jean Louise, who moved away to NY, and then coming home to visit isn't the typical southern girl of the 50's and gives her a very unique perspective. Even more so, she's going to feel dispaced, and not feel like she belongs. And she can't reconcile Atticus to the man she's always known - but tries to convince herself that he is there for other reasons. I'm confused by her memories of the trial...a different outcome than in TKAM??? Will we find out something more later in the book. This section ends with another memory that Scout has when she was most despaired. As upset as she was, I did smile at some of her mis-information, even though it wouldn't be funny for a girl who actually believed some of that!

Dawn: It is confusing, and no, Jean Louise is not a typical Southern girl of the 50's. I am blaming this spoiler to TKAM (view spoiler)[ I'm confused by her memories of the trial...she says that Atticus got him acquitted??? (hide spoiler)] on the fact that this book was written first and then left alone since it was supposedly finished and put away and Harper Lee was not able to edit it. Perhaps they left it in to authenticate that it was really the way she wrote it.
Dawn wrote: "A lot to process in these chapters! I could actually feel Jean Louise's nausea as she watched the townsmen, and especially Atticus and Henry at the meeting. It is confusing, because if Atticus is ..."

Anyone else feel like the book is more of a rough draft? So far, I'm liking the story, for the most part, but it just seems unpolished. Besides that, the courthouse scene was kinda difficult to take in. Especially her reactions afterward. And even though she's an adult, it kinda seems like she's growing up again. She viewed her father through the eyes of a child, now she has to see the reality and it's not pretty.

Perhaps it is the audio book flowing so nicely, but it hasn't felt like a rough draft to me Adalis - but I think it is very likely a rough draft based on what we know (and hope) What I mean by that hope is that I am not interested in having someone else ghost write it without credit and want to hope it is as Harper Lee herself meant it to be when she put it aside.

Adalis: It is very difficult to take in, by the presence of not just Atticus and Hank, but "most every man in town". That solidarity and number of attendees must have seemed overwhelming to Scout. And I say Scout here because when she entered that courthouse balcony as a twenty-six year old Jean Louise she was Scout again, a young girl ready to witness her great Father do great things.
We all took a bit of a fall when what transpired was reveled, I agree with you, she viewed her father up to that point through the eyes of a child and the reality is not pretty.

Adalis wrote: " the courthouse scene was kinda difficult to take in. Especially her reactions afterward. And even though she's an adult, it kinda seems like she's growing up again. She viewed her father through the eyes of a child, now she has to see the reality and it's not pretty. "

You're right, Ann. I was a bit surprised that nearly all the men of the town were there. I would've thought that after so many years since the trial, at least some attitudes would've changed for the better. I was also surprised to see her boyfriend there. I don't now what I would've done if I were in her shoes.

I was almost amused by the garbled version of the birds and the bees, seeing some of the same in the 50s, and knowing that the first few versions to which I was exposed out on the streets hardly resembled what either sex or love were about.

Later on in the book I have some more thoughts on this Citizen's Council meeting that I will refrain from saying here, but yes, I was very disappointing that what looked like almost all of the men from the town were there.
Scout doesn't see her uncle Jack Finch there or she would have commented on it.
Adalis wrote: "You're right, Ann. I was a bit surprised that nearly all the men of the town were there. I would've thought that after so many years since the trial, at least some attitudes would've changed for th..."

Barry: It was rather amusing, and in those days kids didn't have easy access to find out more about the birds and the bees on their own. As the months dragged on it seemed a bit less amusing and I felt for Scout so alone with her fears.

Then at the end of chapter 11 when Jem tells Scout he wants to be there for her if she has questions or something she can't tell Atticus about I was so happy.
Barry wrote: "I was almost amused by the garbled version of the birds and the bees, seeing some of the same in the 50s, and knowing that the first few versions to which I was exposed out on the streets hardly resembled what either sex or love were about. "

I think I was more shocked that Atticus had one of the vile pamphlets in his possession than that he publicly went to the Citizen's Council meeting.

Ann wrote: " At forty-six Atticus is a widower and raising two young children after his beloved wife dies of a sudden heart attack. ..."

How sad that Atticus experiences untimely death twice, first with his wife and then with Jem.

Ann wrote: "Scout's young exposure to a garbled version of the birds and the bees as espoused by other more worldly girls in the community leads her to nine months of terror that she is pregnant from being french kissed. ..."

I found this both amusing and stretching credulity. I can understand Scout not have been explained about the birds and the bees, but hard to believe that she had never seen a pregnant woman.

I can't imagine living nine months with the terror of being pregnant.

Ann wrote: " am blaming this spoiler to TKAM (view spoiler) on the fact that this book was written first and then left alone since it was supposedly finished and put away and Harper Lee was not able to edit it. ..."

Interesting. I decided that it was a different trial to which Jean Louise was referrring, although now that I think about it it's unlikely that Atticus was involved in two such signature trials, or that if he was she would mention one and not the other.

I missed this completely in the listening of that chapter. That does indeed make what transpired in the meeting even more ominous.

Ann wrote: "Adalis: It is very difficult to take in, by the presence of not just Atticus and Hank, but "most every man in town". That solidarity and number of attendees must have seemed overwhelming to Scout. ..."

Ann wrote: "I think I was more shocked that Atticus had one of the vile pamphlets in his possession than that he publicly went to the Citizen's Council meeting."

Given all the headlines in the reviews about Atticus being racist I was less shocked by this, but even then I took it as if Atticus was in posession of some sort of evidence for a trial, that he had it to examine and figure out how to counteract. No other explanation made sense to me at that point.

Carol: I would like to think that too. The headlines did inevitably influence and perhaps water down my surprise at Atticus' not being perfect, so I took this evidence at face value when I first read it. But it could have been evidence. Wishful thinking perhaps, but innocent until proven guily.
Carol/Bonadie wrote: " Given all the headlines in the reviews about Atticus being racist I was less shocked by this, but even then I took it as if Atticus was in posession of some sort of evidence for a trial, that he had it to examine and figure out how to counteract. No other explanation made sense to me at that point. "

Carol/Bonadie wrote: "Ann wrote: " am blaming this spoiler to TKAM (view spoiler) on the fact that this book was written first and then left alone since it was supposedly finished and put away and Harper Lee was not abl..."
and carol wrote: Interesting. I decided that it was a different trial to which Jean Louise was referrring, although now that I think about it it's unlikely that Atticus was involved in two such signature trials, or that if he was she would mention one and not the other. /i>

i have to say i am struggling a bit with the book as a whole. i think part of it is i HAVE to read it for my F2F book club and i don't always read well under pressure..lol but i'm also finding the writing a bit cumbersome in parts.
i assumed she was talking about the trial she was watching as the 26 year old jean louise, not "THE" trial from TKAM.

Sherry: I have always had issues with assigned reading, I have to be in the mood on my own. I think that's why this sort of forum with flexibility for timing our group reading works so well.
I can remember reading a self selected book "all night" while a school assigned book sat waiting to be cracked open.

Ann wrote: "Sherry: I have always had issues with assigned reading, I have to be in the mood on my own. I think that's why this sort of forum with flexibility for timing our group reading works so well.
I can..."

i totally agree, ann. i don't always get to the books we're reading when the group is reading them, but eventually i get to most of them.

Sherry wrote: "
i totally agree, ann. i don't always get to the books we're reading when the group is reading them, but eventually i get to most of them. ..."

Me too, Sherry. The only thing I miss doing that is the excitement of discovering the book and talking about it at the same time as others. By the time I get around to reading a book long discussed I think some of the key things have already been said, so I wind up saying "me too." And I think some folks have already moved on by the time I get there so there is less response to my janey-come-lately comments. But,I'm not willing to give us reading things when they strike me, so I'll have to put up with that.