I Kill the Mockingbird

by Paul Acampora

When Lucy, Elena, and Michael receive their summer reading list, they are excited to see To Kill A Mockingbird included. But not everyone in their class shares the same enthusiasm. So they hatch a plot to get the entire town talking about the well-known Harper Lee classic. They plan controversial ways to get people to read the book, including re-shelving copies of the book in bookstores so that people think they are missing and starting a website committed to "destroying the mockingbird." Their efforts are successful when all of the hullabaloo starts to direct more people to the book. But soon, their exploits start to spin out of control and they unwittingly start a mini revolution in the name of books.

I Kill the Mockingbird by Paul Acampora is a middle grade novel perfect for fans of To Kill a Mockingbird and Go Set a Watchman. This title has Common Core connections.

“The banter among the three whip-smart friends would make John Green proud. . . . You won't have to hide any copies of this to create demand.” — The Bulletin

“Fans of Janet Tashjian's The Gospel According to Larry series will enjoy this look at how the power of creativity and the internet can cause a cultural movement. . . . Acampora's novel is for lovers of literature, especially how the classics work in the current moment.” — VOYA

Genres: Middle Grade, Young Adult, Realistic Fiction, Fiction, Friendship, Books About Books, Contemporary

176 pages, Unknown Binding

First published May 20, 2014

About the author

I was born in Bristol, Connecticut and grew up surrounded by an extended mob of parents, sister, grandparents, cousins, neighborhood kids, rabbits, dogs, nurses, engineers and others that, at various times, included musicians, Italians, Canadians, cancer survivors, gardeners, chicken killers, hair dressers, poker players, checker cheaters, pony riders, shopkeepers, factory workers, elementary school teachers, auto mechanics, rock and roll fanatics, massage therapists, several people who may or may not be dead, and a crowd of other miscellaneous wheeler-dealers. I went to school at St. Joseph Elementary School and St. Paul Catholic High School. I was a voracious reader as a kid. I still am. I attended the University of Notre Dame (GO IRISH!) where, thanks to my friend John Costello and his father, Dr. Donald Costello, I earned a degree in American Studies despite the fact that the only American places I’d ever visited were summer vacations on a beach at Rhode Island and occasional day trips around New England to watch jai alia, greyhound racing or the trotters with my grandfather who, with my Uncle Joe, taught me how to ride and drive a sulky behind my very own pony named Misty (that's me and Misty at left). After college, I wandered around the country for a few years. Despite what my mother might say, I did not steal her 1973 Buick Electra. Despite what my friends might say, the car was the color of summer gold. Not piss yellow. I've lived in every state that begins with the letter U or a C. I was a Student Conservation Association volunteer for awhile giving tours at the Cleveland-Lloyd Dinosaur Quarry in southeast Utah. I spent a winter schlepping very expensive bags around the Rocky Mountains for guests of the Snowmass Lodging Company. As a Holy Cross Associate volunteer, I lived with a half-dozen friends in a tiny house in the San Francisco Bay area where we tried to be good people. I stayed in California to teach kindergarten at St. Patrick Elementary school in West Oakland. I got married (yahoo!), and my wife and I lived in “the heart of the bay,” Hayward, California for nearly ten years. When we decided to move, we put names of favorite places in a paper bag and pulled out a slip that said PENNSYLVANIA. So that’s where we live now. These days, I remain married to my best friend. I have a son and a daughter who keep me on my toes. I’ve got a day job and a kayak and tons of books that I love to read. I write early in the morning and late at night. My favorite place in the world is wherever my wife and kids are. I am especially happy when that place is next to a lake or in France. My favorite word in the dictionary is Naugahyde. I’ve been a vegetarian for about 20 years. My favorite non-home-cooked meal is cinnamon-raisin French toast plus black coffee at the Karlton Café in Quakertown, Pennsylvania. For the future, I hope my family and friends are safe, healthy and happy and that I will write dozens and dozens of new stories and novels, each one better than the last.

Reviews

[karen · Rating 3 out of 5]

…I realize that even though West Glover is not a very big place, there's an enormous amount of activity going on around me pretty much all the time. There's Little League games, literary terrorists, crazy families, cancer patients… and that's just at my house. The thought makes me laugh out loud.

this is a cute MG book about booknerds. i don't read a lot of MG, but i will when there are booknerds involved, like Escape from Mr. Lemoncello's Library. in that book, the kids are trying to solve a mystery/several mysteries using literature and library skills. in this book, it is the kids themselves creating the mystery using social media, the law of supply and demand, and a love of harper lee.

i never thought i would ever read a book in which "shrinkage" (that's bookstore-shrinkage, not the other kind) would be a factor in plotting literary terrorism. for those of you who have never been in the trenches:

"Shelving books incorrectly is as good as stealing them. It's almost worse. Our computers will show that we have a title in stock, but nobody will be able to find it. Not only that, it's very difficult to convince our corporate headquarters to send us a book if our computer insists that it's somewhere in the store." He lowers his voice. "Shelving badly leads to shrinkage."

"Shrinkage?" I say.

"Loss of profit due to loss of product," he explains. "Shrinkage is very, very bad."

and it's true. now, a superior bookseller develops a robot-sense where they can just glance at their shelves and instantly see what doesn't belong, what has been left by a customer, what has been hidden, what has been misshelved, but these kids hear "shrinkage," and ideas begin to grow in their minds.

you see, we have three fourteen year old kids: lucy, elena, and michael who about to enter high school, and who are passionate about reading. frustrated that not enough students are excited by their school's summer reading list, particularly lucy's beloved To Kill a Mockingbird, they decide to honor both the book and the memory of their favorite, recently-passed teacher, by hiding all copies of the book in bookstores and libraries, leaving fliers in their place, and starting a website, twitter account, etc, to get the word out that SOMETHING is happening with this book and DONT YOU WANT TO READ IT TO SEE WHAT ALL THE FUSS IS ABOUT? which plot takes off like wildfire, in part due to wil wheaton, and in part because this takes place in connecticut, and preventing someone in connecticut from having something they want is one of the most serious crimes in the state, after "using the wrong fork for salad" and "neglecting to buy your daughter a pony."

and of course, the plot begins to spread well beyond connecticut and transcends their wildest imaginings and as in all good MG books, characters will eventually be given an opportunity to make the difficult decision and prove their… ermm character.

it is a cute little story about the power of literature (and social media) with winning characters that has a little romance and some more serious themes like illness and death. this is a perfect stepping-stone book for young readers who will become john green fans when they are a little older - it isn't as dark as his books, but it has those smart, articulate kids that make his books so rewarding to young booknerds. (and old booknerds like me)

it also touches on the nobility of the book trade, including the joys and perils of readers' advisory. when a nine-year-old comes into elena's uncle mort's bookstore looking for dog books, they all rally together to give her a stack of appropriate titles, and after she leaves, elena realizes they haven't given her a copy of tkam

"We forgot to give Ginny one of these."

"That's not a dog book," says Michael.

"There's a dog in it," says Elena.

"A dead dog with rabies doesn't count."

Elena shrugs. "A sale is a sale."

"That little girl does not want a copy of To Kill a Mockingbird," Mort tells us.

"She doesn't know what she wants," says Elena. "That's why she needs us."

"Yes," says Mort, "but we must use our power for good."

"What power?" I ask.
…..

"It's the books that have power,…but a good bookstore will influence what a person chooses to read."

I think for a moment. "Does it have to be a good bookstore?" I ask

More considers the question. "Probably not," he finally admits.

and that's the truth of it - many people don't know what they are looking for, and a good bookseller or librarian is instrumental in that process - providing the right book to the right reader, not "to make a sale," but to build a relationship with a reader in order to foster their love of reading and help them understand what they enjoy in order to make more successful reading choices; to influence them in their selections, selflessly. readers' advisory rocks.

and one quick aside about a tiny little scene i loved: the discard dumpster at the back of this town's library contains both Fancy Coffins to Make Yourself (which i own and love) and Knitting With Dog Hair: Better A Sweater From A Dog You Know and Love Than From A Sheep You'll Never Meet (which i do not own, because of lack-of-materials, although i do have the cat companion volume, Crafting with Cat Hair: Cute Handicrafts to Make with Your Cat. )if i could be assured that this part was based on real-world fact, i would be at the back of that dumpster every single day, scoring these treasures.

and also this, which made my clarity-loving heart swell:

Saying what you mean is hard enough, Lucy. Then you go and add seven or twelve or fourteen extra syllables for no good reason. Pretty soon, we're back to the Tower of Babel."

as much as i love language and the surprisingly poetic and luminous words that exist in the world, i also love efficiency and simplicity and recognizing the time and place for showcasing those "fancy" words. high-five for sliding that sentence in there, sir!

and i am all ears if anyone knows any more MG booknerd books!

come to my blog!

[Bill Kerwin · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is strange how coincidences may haunt the life of a reader. I was going to write a review of this book yesterday, but then I heard of the death of Harper Lee, and suddenly I could no longer think of anything to say.

It is a fitting coincidence, for this likable Middle Grade tribute to Harper Lee's book has death--the pain of death that is past and the fear of death still to come--as one of its important themes. But it is also about summer reading lists, teenage love, the use and misuse of book classification systems, the details of Catholic culture (St. Lucy's eyeballs on a plate, the meaning of “Ordinary Time”), the explosive force of the internet, the sources of faith and action, and--above all--the abiding pleasure of books.

The three friends Lucy, Elena and Michael, who are enjoying their last summer before high school, wish to honor their recently deceased English teacher “Fat Bob” (who dropped dead one day in the cafeteria line) by making every teenager with a summer reading list want to read To Kill a Mockingbird, one of Fat Bob's all-time favorites. They choose an ingenious method: since people always want what they can't get, they decide to become “literary terrorists” (complete with slogan and website) and hide every library and bookstore copy of Mockingbird they can find.

There are, of course, unintended consequences. And a lot of good fun too. But through it all Lucy and her two friends learn, not only about human responsibility, but also how to encounter life's mysteries with expectation and hope.

All in all, this is a fine book for middle grade readers. And a good book for adults as well.

[Donalyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

My husband read this book out loud to me during a 5 hour road trip across West Texas. Because of this delightful book, I will always remember this trip.

We laughed out loud. We cried a little. An amazing book that reads like a love letter to book lovers of all ages.

[Sarah Benko · Rating 1 out of 5]

The characters felt more like an adult's idealized version of teenagers than real kiddos. Sadly, this book did not ring true to me.

[Darren · Rating 2 out of 5]

For me, the storytelling (and quality of writing) took off in the final third of the book. But by that point, I was scratching my head over a convoluted and borrowed-interest plot that seemed so thoroughly unreal, so designed to amuse adults (booksellers and librarians and social media marketers?), and (I hope this isn't really true) so manipulative about using To Kill a Mockingbird and Harper Lee without really giving a young reader any sense of what is truly wonderful about that novel. I Kill the Mockingbird launches with one critical plotline that is barely revisited...and the main character is so sketchily developed that I had to keep reminding myself that she was a girl. There's a romantic subplot here that feels unearned and, thus, forced. And there's plenty of goofy humor that smacks of an adult's voice, not the voice of children. So I'm baffled by the outsized enthusiasm here...many of the reviews and commentary make this sound like the next Newbery Medalist. Maybe I ran my hands over the beautifully designed cover and then opened it with too much of my own enthusiasm? And maybe I'm completely off-base, but this one just didn't hit me with the same joy level that it did other readers.

[Jennifer Lavoie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I had written this book.

When I saw the title and premise of this book, I knew I had to read it. It speaks to me as a seventh grader whose favorite book was To Kill a Mockingbird. It speaks to me as an eighth grade teacher whose cat is named after Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird. It speaks to me as a former bookseller who loved enthusiastic young readers.

Lucy, Michael, and Elena are great characters who decide to make a classic American novel popular again in honor of their deceased teacher. What starts as small mischief ends up becoming a nationwide phenomenon that gets out of control.

But it's about more than that. Lucy is dealing with her mother recovering from cancer while falling for one of her best friends. Elena lives with her uncle Mort who owns a bookshop. And Michael lives with his single mother. So while each character deals with their own struggles, they maintain their friendship and have a crazy summer.

I can't wait to put this book in my classroom to show my students how creative and passionate readers are while still being as cool as Michael. I hope I can be as inspiring as Fat Bob one day.

[Tamara · Rating 5 out of 5]

I would have loved I Kill the Mockingbird even if it didn't:
...revere Fat Bob, exceptional 8th grade English teacher
...mention both of my favorite books from middle school
...feature awesomely bookish characters
...privilege independent bookstores

But I also can't wait to share this dialogue with young writers:

“We will speak for the books."
"Like the Lorax?" When we were little, the Lorax was our favorite Dr. Seuss book.
"Exactly."
"The Lorax speaks for the trees," I remind her.
"Books are made out of paper. Paper is made out of trees."
"What about e-books?"
"We can speak for them, too."
"Audiobooks?"
"Audiobooks speak for themselves." She grins. "Get it?”

And this mentor text for descriptive writing:

"Around us, the neighborhood is settling into the quiet of a summer night that is really not that quiet at all. Crickets and toads chirp and peep. Someone nearby is practicing scales on an out-of-tune piano near an open window. A jangly ice-cream truck song plays in the distance."

I Kill the Mockingbird manages to be & do all of that plus serve as a how-to-create-change guide for middle schoolers! Mr. Acampora, you were so right when you wrote, "If you're a teacher, you dream about having students who will try to change the world someday because of something you do or say in the classroom." In fact, in my sixth-grade classroom students have that very assignment; we call it the Project4Change. Using the strategies they've learned about through studying the Civil Rights Movement, and modern tools like Twitter and Instagram, students design a plan to create positive change in the world around an issue important to them. Sound familiar? Thank you, Paul Acampora.

[Betsy · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s probably fair to say that there is no American classic written with an adult audience in mind that is quite as beloved of children’s book authors as To Kill a Mockingbird. Just off the top of my head I can think of a fair number of middle grade books that directly reference it. Books like, Mockingbird, Also Known As Harper, Sure Signs of Crazy, and A Summer of Sundays, just to name a few. Taking it as a given that the book is a “classic” in the traditional sense, Paul Acampora works with a very tricky premise with fun but occasionally mixed results. I’ve not read many children’s books that have successfully tapped into viral marketing as a theme. Paul dares to go where few have gone before, and the result is a story that takes risks. I can pretty much guarantee that even if you’ve read every other Harper Lee-related middle grade children’s book out there, you ain’t never seen nothing like what Acampora has in store for you here.

Fat Bob was dead. To begin with. He died in the lunch line next to Lucy, telling her to be brave. As one of the school’s more beloved teachers, Lucy chews over his death, even as the summer arrives and she gets to spend more time with her best friends Michael and Elena. The next year they’ll be going to high school and the summer reading list they’ve just been assigned is the usual fare. The Giver. Ender's Game. And, of course, Lucy’s favorite book of all time, To Kill a Mockingbird. That’s when it hits her. What if Lucy, Elena and Michael were able to begin a movement that would end with every literate kid and adult reading that book? But how do you increase demand when supply is so plentiful? Thus begins the ultra-secret “I Kill the Mockingbird” campaign. Together, these three kids begin something that makes the book not only desirable but irresistible. But will they be able to reign in their work when the time comes, or will this viral cause slip out of their control?

One friend of mine picked up the book and wondered if it was just yet another great big To Kill a Mockingbird lovefest. I told her that it was as much a surprise to me as anyone else the fact that Acampora was willing to offer some criticisms of the text. Michael, for example, isn’t afraid to say that the book is about “a little white tomboy who worships her father in a town filled with whacky racist Christians and lynch-mob farmers. It’s a comedy about old-timey southern people who treat each other badly.” And I loved the fact that Elena’s uncle later points out that “real mockingbirds are territorial and aggressive” and that as a result the title may be a joke. After a discussion of innocence vs. ignorance, it makes a pretty good case for why the book should actually have been called “HOW to Kill a Mockingbird.” Even in the midst of these thoughts, Acampora makes a strong case for the book’s merits, but it’s nice to hear an opposing viewpoint once in a while. So many I-love-To-Kill-a-Mockingbird books fail to even acknowledge that there might be another point of view on all this.

If Acampora has a secret strength it may lie in his dialogue. Folks looking for novels to adapt into stage plays would do very well with this book. The lines come fast and loose between the characters. They manage to have this incredibly believable easygoing rapport that many an author would envy. For example, at one point Elena attempts to persuade Michael to do something by saying, “You’d do it for Newman Noggs.” Newman Noggs, we are told, is Michael’s favorite character in Nicholas Nickleby. It’s a pretty fabulous line. Other random lines present themselves just as well:

“Honey . . . the Virgin Mary’s head should not look like a portobello mushroom.”

“There was also a matching ruffled shirt and a bow tie that looked like I stole it off Ronald McDonald.”
“I don’t think Ronald McDonald wears a bow tie.”
“Now you know why.”

“Another definition of wanting is to be missing something. . . When you want something . . . it’s like admitting that your life has a hole in it.”


Not that his descriptions aren’t fairly keen to boot. For example, when Lucy is physically describing herself and her friend Elena she writes, “ . . . she still looks like a little doll that Santa Claus would leave beneath a Christmas tree. I resemble one of those gawky stuffed giraffes that nobody ever wins at the carnival...” That’s good stuff.

Someone once pointed out to me that when it comes to images of families regularly attending church on television, your best bet is probably The Simpsons. And when it comes to middle grade novels with casually religious kids and families, it must be significant that I see almost none. Either the religion is the whole point of the book (or a significant chunk) or it’s just not there. Admittedly religious publishers like Zonderkidz will sometimes do a contemporary MG novel with religion not necessarily on the forefront, but even in those cases it’s not as casual as it might be. With I Kill the Mockingbird religion is a part of life but the author never caves to didacticism at any point. He’s also funny about it. A conversation between the characters dressed up like Mary and Joseph contains the lines “Joe, you couldn’t do a little better with the accommodations?” “You fell for the first angel that came along ... This is what you get.” ... “He looked like Johnny Depp, and he promised he’d show me heaven.” On the more serious side, later Lucy's dad remarks, “Life is a gift. Going to church is like sending a thank-you card.” This conversation occurs in the midst of Lucy’s query about why her mother got cancer. Acampora handles it with aplomb too. He walks a fine line and produces a fine book as a result.

Of course, the book did have a very difficult concept to get across to the readers. For me, the trickiest part of the story was figuring out why it took place at all. What we have here is a book about an everyday revolution that has grown up in response to a mediocre problem. There’s no particular reason for the I Kill the Mockingbird campaign to take off in the first place. No bully has informed Lucy that they hate the book. There isn’t an entity in town that is actually actively attempting to ban it. Aside from the fact that the kids are responding to the death of a beloved teacher there’s not a huge impetus for the amount of work they’re poring into this project. Then there’s the rather optimistic view of viral sensations. The idea that such internet phenomena can be reigned in in any way is to fail to acknowledge their dark side. I will say that I was very much relieved when a plan to stage a fake book burning was cancelled. I wasn’t sure if the premise, nice as it was, could stand up to that level of symbolism. You can understand what the kids are going for, but the ultimate outcome is unclear.

There’s also the huge elephant in the room. The internet. The book relies on the existence of the internet. For any of this to work, the internet has to take the I Kill the Mockingbird campaign and make it famous nationwide. By the same token, if the whole idea is to make physical copies of To Kill a Mockingbird difficult to find in stores and libraries, what’s to stop people from just ordering it off of the internet? Admittedly, I am a children’s librarian and I have seen firsthand the sheer number of people who would rather not order a book online when it comes to summer reading. That said, if someone couldn’t find that book in a store, what would stop them from instantly ordering it off of Amazon without another thought? I think there could be a good workaround for this problem, but it wasn’t really seriously addressed in the book.

I cannot help but love the fact that our lead characters decide not to “hit” independent bookstores because they’re “just too smart for us.” Maybe it’s pandering, but it’s cute pandering so we’ll let it go. Then there’s the advice given on libraries weeding their collections. I can think of a LOT of specialists who are going to get a kick out of Elena’s definition of why people weed books. She compares one unloved book to “Having a rose bush in a vegetable garden. Do you know what that’s called? . . . A weed. It’s pretty to look at, but it won’t help you make a salad.” Put THAT on a t-shirt, stat.

Basically, the book is a pleasure to read. Adult readers (and a couple young ones) will ultimately have to suspend their disbelief in some areas if they are to believe in the I Kill the Mockingbird’s success rate. It’s an enticing premise and a fun book to read. Interestingly, I think it’ll appeal both to those kids who love the book and those who really don’t enjoy it (no small feat). And certainly, this is unlike anything else I’ve read in a very long time. In the end, I may have a qualm here or there, but I’m a fan and I think kids will like it as well. Straight up middle school fare. Get it where you can.

For ages 10 and up.

[Karin · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars, and I'm going to round it up because it's a fabulous book for kids even though some of it is unbelievable. What a great story to promote great books! Three life-long or school-long, I've forgotten) who are in the same class miss a teacher who passed away. One has an idea that the other two get behind in an unconventional way to steer their classmates into choosing To Kill a Mockingbird since their late teacher had told them that would be the only book on their summer list; the new teacher gave a list that includes it. Read the book and the blurb to find out more--the less you know, the better, IMO.

[Claudia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love literary characters, well-read characters who understand the power of books. Lucy and Elena and Michael are all bright, bright kids who know books. They're not at all intimidated by other 8th-going-into-9th graders who hate books. They get them. I love the fights over books...is Dickens a bore or a roller coaster ride? Is Twain an equal-opportunity-bufoon-maker? What about TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD? Is it worth its status as a classic?

The kids have been assigned to read a classic over the summer, and somehow their knowledge of books and bookstores, of displays and promotion lead them to a massive stunt...what if they could mis-shelf and 'disappear' all the copies of TKAM, to create a greater demand among even people who might not care about reading. The kids understand how our minds work.

They create a sense of panic with their project, IKillTheMockingbird.com. Theymight go too far, but they are kids, after all. Kids dealing with loss, and old griefs, and ninth grade, and first love. They have a lot on their plates.

What kept me going in this one was the books...the titles, the characters..the smartness of the kids.

Favorite lines:

"if you're a teacher, you dream of having students who will try to change the world someday because of something you do or say in the classroom."


"A book connects you to the universe like a cellphone connects you to the internet. But it only works if your battery's not dead."

[TKAM]"The story's got rape, murder, lynching and rabies. There's also a man named Boo, an old lady drug addict and a kid dressed up like pork chops."

And:

[Reading] "It's not enough to know what all the words mean...a good reader starts to see what an entire book is trying to say. And then a good reader will have something to say in return. If you're reading well..you're having a conversation."

Smart writing.

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Even after a book club where almost no one liked the book and I hadn't finished, yet felt the need to defend even though I had some of the same reactions, I've finished it and still will defend the book for what it is. There was a line in the text that stood out to me after having the discussion...I'll paraphrase because I no longer have the book close by, but it said something to the effect that not all books need to be masterpieces and they aren't meant to be. I still believe my comparison to Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire" holds true. There are many topics that are brought up and not discussed thoroughly, giving students ample points to pick something of interest and dig deeper. It also gives readers, who are up for the challenge, some higher level texts and authors to put on their reading list. Even books that don't quite hit the mark are books that can lead readers to something that does. That's the value I find in this book.

[Barb Middleton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Eighth graders Lucy, Elena, and Michael want to get people excited about reading their late teacher's favorite book and one on the summer reading list, "To Kill a Mockingbird," by Harper Lee. It is the beginning of summer vacation and they hatch a conspiracy named, "I Kill the Mockingbird," where they make it hard to get the book by hiding them in bookstores and libraries; hence, limiting the supplies to the public.Then they setup a website and social media campaign inspiring others to do the same. When a famous man tweets about it the campaign goes viral and escalates out of control. The three decide to end it with a big bang having a book burning party. I've acted out books before, but never imitated a book burning bonfire. Thank goodness the characters change their minds on that thought. Book burning is not a good idea and would have landed 'em in a heap o' trouble. Their initial idea is to burn a thousand pages of "To Kill a Mockingbird" and create a big finish to their scheme of getting people excited over reading it. They take old weeded library books from a dumpster and are going to burn them saying it is Harper Lee's book. Their intentions are to honor their dead English teacher through the creation of a funeral pyre in memory of his favorite book, but most are going to misconstrue it as rebellious behavior against reading or think of it as a metaphor of demagoguery, censorship, and suppression.

While the plot is somewhat silly, the character development and dialogue are powerful. I laughed time-after-time with the author's unique phrases and hilarious banter between the threesome. Elena is a hoot and culprit of most, while Michael offers opposing viewpoints and is his own person, and Lucy narrates while dealing with her mother's cancer. While discussing their book burning Elena jumps on the tricycle that African American Michael is peddling and he turns and says, "This isn't Driving Miss Daisy." Earlier Elena is described as looking like a doll that Santa leaves under the Christmas tree. She is also described as a black-haired bulldozer in a pink dress. She's a bit out-of-control which makes her a gas. Michael is figuring out his Little League options and what is best for himself as he and Lucy deal with feelings they are having for each other. All three are anxious about starting high school next year. The trio call themselves "literary terrorists" and the nonstop references to literature are great fun. Oddly, the dead teacher is stereotyped as fat. The author does a great job not making the characters sound too adult. My favorite line is Mark Twain being referenced as an "equal opportunity buffoon maker."

Lucy's mom is recovering from cancer and doesn't take care of herself. Lucy nags her about her unhealthy eating habits and at the end shows how scared she is of her dying. Her mom has a pretty healthy attitude on death even if she doesn't on eating right. The irony adds depth to the storyline. The conversations on religion do not moralize but tend to be funny. When Elena and Lucy are doing a photo-shoot for Lucy's mom as Joseph and the Virgin Mary, she asks Elena to have more "wonder" on her face. Elena quips, "'If I am the Mother of God, then I wonder why I just gave birth in a barn.'" She turns to me [Lucy]. "'Joe, you couldn't do a little better with accommodations?'" Joe [Lucy that is] responds that is what you get for falling for the first angel that came along. "Elena gazes up at the sky and sighs. "'He looked like Johnny Depp, and he promised he'd show me heaven." Later Lucy describes praying to St. Lucy, "My namesake is the patron saint of eye disorders, and her statue is supposed to remind us not to sit too close to the TV screen." She goes on to describe the statue, St. Lucy, holding a tray with two gouged eyeballs on it. St. Lucy poked out her eyes to avoid marrying a pagan. "Now I know that the Catholic thing can be seriously weird sometimes." Another time when Lucy discusses faith she says she doesn't know if it is better to believe in miracles or the randomness of life. Nothing is forced down the readers throat.

Michael presents a fresh opposing viewpoint to Harper Lee's book that is thought-provoking. He calls the protagonist a white tomboy that "worships her father in a town filled with whacky racist Christians and lynch-mob farmers. It's a comedy about old-timey southern people who treat each other badly." He goes on to point out that Atticus Finch isn't a very good lawyer ending up with three executed clients and letting a murderer go free. Later Elena's father, Mort, points out that mockingbirds are aggressive, liars, unconscionable,and territorial as opposed to being a symbol of innocence. When Michael asks if he is joking Mort replies, "contradiction and paradox are the building blocks of great humor." The author practices what Mort preaches as this is found throughout the text.While the short text makes for a good read aloud and discussion, I did wish the plot was longer than 166 pages as I wanted to spend more time with the characters. I know I'll be looking for more books by this author.

[Kris (My Novelesque Life) · Rating 4 out of 5]

RATING: 4 STARS
(Review Not on Blog)

A cute novel for preteens, teens and really for anyone who loves To Kill a Mockingbird. Lucy, Elena, and Michael are happy to see To Kill a Mockingbird on the summer reading list, but may be the only ones in their class that are excited. When the trio realize that this book is not loved as it should be they decide to take matters in their own hands. They start a revolution to get people talking about the book, and hopefully reading it. The characters are realistic and engaging while the plot is entertaining and heartwarming.

***I received an eARC from NETGALLEY***

[payton bourgelas · Rating 1 out of 5]

The worst piece of literature to come out of the 21st century. Offensive to all who read. If this is path that our writers are going to take, there is no hope for our future.

If you read this you will probably die.

[Beverly · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a light fun read to kick off my summer reading. The book does have some serious elements: we start of with the death of a teacher, Lucy's mom is recovering from cancer, and two out of the three best friends are realizing that they are bit more than friends. Those these add a bit of seriousness to the story, they are not overwhelming - it's as though they are just a bit of seasoning to the story.

I loved the way Acampora puts some excitement into assigned reading. When I was in school, I loved it when the teacher assigned summer reading. In fact, I would often read books off the assigned reading lists for other grade levels - but then I've always been a bit of a book nerd. After having read this book, it makes me wonder about all the books that I find mis-shelved in the library. Are some of my students trying to start a reading revolution?

Young adult readers will appreciate how clever Lucy, Elena and Michael are. It helps that even though they are serious readers, they aren't too serious. IMHO I think they add a bit of coolness to being a bookworm. Adults will appreciate that the adults in the book don't come off as totally clueless. All of the characters feel genuine. In fact these three remind me of some of my own students.
I think this book would be an excellent choice for a student book club. What a great way to generate a discussion on classic books!



Recommended for: 5th grade and up.

AR Level: No AR level at this time.

Booklady's Rating: 4 of 5 Hedgehogs!

[Janet Frost · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was a mixed bag for me. It was the story of three friends the summer before starting high school. They are assigned a summer reading list with one of the choices being "To Kill A Mockingbird".
Somehow, they decide to hype up demand for the book by making it appear to be disappearing. I had trouble buying into that part of the story. It just seemed to lose it's focus as the story went along.
I did however, really enjoy the characters and their summer of learning new things about themselves. The whole hide/steal the books conspiracy was interesting from the point of view of the power of social media. The whole thing took on a life of its own and the kids had to find a way to justify what they had done and find a way to end the game.
I would be hard pressed to see this one as a Newbery but a fun read, that I think students would enjoy.

[April · Rating 5 out of 5]

I Kill The Mockingbird by Paul Acampora makes me love reading and want to read all the classics and want to go viral over something and desperately wish that it was based on a true story. Acampora’s book was the first book I read during the spring 2014 Dewey Readathon. Frankly, there is something to be said for reading a book in a single sitting. This was the perfect book to begin with because afterward, I wanted to pump my fist and tell everyone just how awesome books and reading and engaging with stories can be.
Read the rest of my review here
Review goes live June 13, 2014

[Ayla · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ok so I've read this four times and I have to say that is gets better everytime. I'm not exactly sure what it is about this book but I just love it. I guess I find the characters relatable in some ways, but I also find this book kinda inspiring. Inspiring because the characters in it aren't all that worried about looking dumb or stupid or nerdy. Inspiring because it reminds you that some things will be scary but you don't have to go through them alone. Inspiring because it reminds you to enjoy every sandwich :)

[flaams · Rating 4 out of 5]

Aaahw this novel gave me all sorts of feelings.
It is witty, it is so funny - it literally made me grin from beginning to end - and it is so underrated. I don't think many people know this book, but it is toally woth reading.
It is labelled as middle grade reading , but I wouldn't say it is for middle grades. The characters are way too mature to be in middle school, they would be too mature to be in high school too, but I would have accepted that more.
This book is so much . Needless to say that "To kill a mockingbird" is not the main theme, even though it's the most montioned novel, but this book is a book about books... lovely, one could say and so it is.
It has some important food for thoughts, but never failed to amuse me. I was so caught with the increadibly surreal, yet brilliant plan the three kids had, it was pure genius.

Something that was missing though was an indepth development of the love story between Lucy, our main character and narrator, and Michael, her long time friend. Why the author decided to mention it and not develop it will always be a question of mine, but the rest of the novel was just so delightful and heart warming.
In a world where books are losing more and more supporters, three students decide to trick the world into doing what they want them to do, using the most ancient deception of all. Is there anything better than that?

[Abigail Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

So I needed something lighthearted and funny, and this did not disappoint.

I love when authors create titles for the chapter (especially when they completely capture what happens in the scene, but still make you laugh like these did)!

I also really appreciated Lucy and her parents. Lucy’s dad trusted her enough that he didn’t need to know everything she was up to (even if he suspected), and Lucy never tried to lie to her dad. Lucy’s mom just survived cancer, and many of the conversations that come out of that are touching.

The literary humor is great, I got a lot of the book humor, though I’m sure there’s stuff I missed (it was sprinkled everywhere! A book nerd’s playground :)

And I’m pretty sure that Lucy, Michael, and Elena accomplished their goal. They set out to get people to read To Kill a Mockingbird, and (though I’ve already read it once) I’m pretty sure I’ll be rereading it again soon.

[babyhippoface · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book. Loved everything about it. It's clever and fresh, and it just made me happy.

Lucy, Elena, & Michael are my kind of kids. They reminded me of my daughters and their friends. They're good kids, funny, responsible, intelligent, sometimes silly or careless but great kids. They tease each other but are always kind, and they love To Kill a Mockingbird, one of my all-time favorite novels. How could I not love them?

As a librarian, one of my frustrations comes from watching kids ignore books I adore. I want them all to read them and like them as much as I do. But I can't force them to do either. How can I stir up interest? That's part of my job, so I ask myself this question all the time. And that's what Lucy, Elena, and Michael are asking themselves here. How can they get people to read To Kill a Mockingbird? They hatch a scheme they think their recently-deceased English teacher, Mr. Nowak ("Fat Bob") would like, and according to the book, it is either "remarkably stupid or unbelievably brilliant". They'll get people interested in the book by denying them access. People always want what they can't have, right? That Elena, she's a clever one. The results are certainly more than they bargained for but make for an interesting ride.

Acampora has a gift for creating likeable characters. The three teenagers, their parents, and even Fat Bob were all a pleasure to get to know. Michael is a talented baseball player, possibly headed for the majors.He's a nice guy who lives with his mother, a police officer who coaches little kids in baseball and watches out for her son.

Elena, orphaned as young child, lives with her Uncle Mort and helps him run his bookstore. She is short and saucy, the developer-of-schemes, the force behind the "I kill the mockingbird" movement.

Lucy, through whose eyes we are lucky enough to experience this story, comes from a home that is loving, stable, and encouraging even in the midst of the storm of her mother's cancer. Her father is wise, calm, and treats Lucy with respect while still parenting. (Hmmm...he reminds me of someone...oh, I know, only the All-Time Greatest Character in All of Literature, Atticus Finch. You go, Dad.) When Lucy expresses her frustration with going to church in the face of her mother's disease, his answer is a cool, Life is a gift. Going to church is like sending a thank-you card. Then he leads her to think about how things that seem terrible often lead to positive outcomes. At the end of this conversation he tells her, I'm not saying that cancer is a gift...but you don't know what will come of it. Personally, I don't believe that God has motives that we are supposed to understand or enjoy. Lucy says, But you still say thank-you. And he replies, Good manners never hurt anybody. What a great answer.

As a cancer survivor Lucy's mother is sassy and upbeat rather than tired and fragile, and I really liked her. That's possibly (okay, probably) because I have recently been diagnosed with a brain tumor and I appreciated her strength and positive attitude. My favorite passage from the book comes from a conversation between Lucy and her mom, who tells her, I'm not one of those people who think that cancer is some kind of jousting match. People live or die based on good medicine, good luck, and the grace of God. The people that die from it did not fail. The people who live will die another day.

[*Side Note: About 1/5 of the way into the story I knew I wanted my daughter to read this book, but I had to finish it first to see if Lucy's mom lived or died. I couldn't hand my teenager a book where the mom dies of cancer. Would not be good at this particular time. SPOILER ALERT: She lives. And has some terrific things to teach her daughter, too. Now I can hand this to my child without worry. Beautiful.]

This isn't a long journey, but it's an entirely fun one. One more quote I love comes from Mr. Nowak: We are all broken, but sometimes the jagged pieces fit together nicely. I'd say that sums up this life quite well. I would (and already have) recommend this to any middle or high school student who loves to read and is as savvy as Lucy, Michael, and Elena.

[Andrea Lorenz · Rating 3 out of 5]

Who doesn't want to pick up a book with this premise: three teens, about to enter high school, want to get their classmates excited about their summer reading list - especially To Kill a Mockingbird - so they start up a website "I Kill the Mockingbird," start hiding copies of the book in bookstores and libraries, and distribute radical flyers all over their little Connecticut town. Much to their surprise and delight, the movement takes off and gathers momentum. Soon I Kill the Mockingbird is getting comments from people across the nation. It's gotten a lot bigger than these guys expected and they're not sure what to do next.

This was cute. It's a book with a particular audience though I think. Teachers will love it, book lovers will love it, and precocious middle schoolers and ninth graders will like it. I think that Lucy, Michael and Elena are a little too precocious for 5th and 6th graders (who are the kids I'd like to give it to) and 7th, 8th, and 9th graders might think that a book about 8th graders isn't cool enough. That being said, the plot is wonderful. The dialogue is snappy and smart. The adults are REAL - which I love in books with teens and middle schoolers. A nice book to finish off the year with.

[Claire · Rating 4 out of 5]

There was a lot that I liked about this, a couple of things that didn't really hang together, and one thing (with two instances) that I really didn't like.

Very, very, very nicely done:
-The family.
-The way Acampora handled faith/Christianity in this particular family.
-Dealing with the aftermath of cancer.
-Friendship
-Middle school romance
-representation of different types of families
-the character development, esp Lucy
-not messing with indie booksellers

Eh / Huh:
-the concept, and the way the kids executed it... it just didn't really make *sense*. Why not pretend to want to ban it?
-complete unacknowledgment of Amazon/online retailing

Cringe:
-Twice, the one African-American best friend made clear, legitimate statements about racism in classic books that they were reading: one, that Mark Twain made black people look like buffoons, and two, that To Kill a Mockingbird is “a little white tomboy who worships her father in a town filled with whacky racist Christians and lynch-mob farmers. It’s a comedy about old-timey southern people who treat each other badly.” Both were dismissed IMMEDIATELY without even any discussion by one of the other white characters and then none of the concerns were ever addressed or brought up again. (For the first one, one of the adult characters said something like, "Mark Twain made everybody look like buffoons - he was an equal opportunity buffoon-maker"; for the second one, Lucy just responded that it was a great book and the matter was dropped.)

At first when I read Michael's statement, I thought this was going to be a great chance to model a potentially difficult conversation about race and racism, both personal and systemic, in the same way that Acampora models some REALLY terrific conversations between kids and adults about faith, illness, and death. Those conversations matter to be gracefully demonstrated and explored without being didactic. But instead, boom, despite the perfect opening to talk about race, the one black main character is immediately shut down by the white characters around him and then the conversation is never reopened.

Very disappointing and discomfiting piece of an otherwise finely crafted little book.

[Lisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

I love To Kill a Mockingbird. But, I just couldn't buy into the concept of this story as much as I tried, even if it was inspired by one of my all-time favorite books.

Three best friends/rising 9th graders decide to initiate an anonymous campaign to get people to read Harper Lee's classic by misplacing the copies among bookstore and library shelves, therefore making it appear that the books are mysteriously disappearing, therefore increasing the demand for---and hopefully the interest in reading----To Kill a Mockingbird. Got that?

A noble cause, perhaps, and I won't tell if you if their mission is successful or not. But I will say that little of it was believable and it left me with more questions than answers, namely: How are they sure that everyone that is buying the book is reading the book? Isn't what they're doing illegal? Aren't there security cameras anywhere? Why don't the parents give more of a damn, especially with one being a principal and another a police officer? Does there really exist anywhere three best friends that have each, all before even finishing middle school, read and enjoyed To Kill a Mockingbird so passionately that they are willing to go to go to such ridiculous extremes? And most pressing: So...that's it?

A bizarre, albeit original, concept poorly executed.

[Jane Drabkin · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read the reviews and thought that I would like this book, but maybe my expectations were just too high. The tone was light and it was an easy read. However, Michael seemed too good to be true and he often sounded as if he was regurgitating an encyclopedia in an effort to move the plot. In theory he kept track of every book they hid, but since they split up when they entered bookstores and malls, his list only had a third of the books. It seemed even more improbable that these 8th graders had read most of the books on the summer reading list. But as technically challenged as I am, as soon as they started the website, using cellphones, etc. I felt that it would be relatively easy for someone to figure out who these kids were. Maybe there were just too many miracles for me--the miracle of her mother's recovery, the miracle of this becoming viral, the miracle that the kids from Rhode Island find them, but the media and police don't, the miracle that all the parental units stay calm, the miracle that they don't burn anything down, etc. etc.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

As soon as I read this book's synopsis I knew I had to read it. After all, To Kill a Mockingbird is my favorite novel of all time. Clearly, author Paul Acampora is of a similar mind.
Both the dialogue and story line are highly unrealistic. However, the book is a love letter to classic literature and familiar characters. The novel reads like a Who's Who? filled with title name dropping. As a bibliophile and Mockingbird aficionado I enjoyed this book. However, I am not sure young readers will feel the same way. While the reading level is probably at about grade five or six, many of those students will not yet be familiar with most of the novels mentioned. Older middle school and high school students, delving into required reading lists much like the one chronicled in this book, may find the story too young for their tastes. My guess is teachers and book loving adults will be most appreciative of this novel.
I do recommend reading I Kill the Mockingbird if for no other reason, than blissful novel nostalgia.

[Newport Librarians · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm a book nerd, so I loved this book. Other book nerds will love this book. People that aren't HUGE readers will think it's cute and idealistic. Teens - I'm not sure. Teens that love books might love it - but teens looking for something to read because they have to or are just starting to get into books probably won't relate to the characters.

Three 8th graders (Lucy, Michael, and Elena) are enjoying their summer vacation before high school starts. But after a teachers death (and knowing about his profound love for To Kill a Mockingbird) they hatch a plan to get all the kids in their school to WANT to read that book.

I personally haven't found a handsome baseball jock that loves to read, fight about characterization, and hang out with two average, unpopular girls. But it's nice that he exists in this book, and there's a good chance that kids that read this book might get an interest to read TKAMB. Maybe. Hopefully. Because THAT is definitely a great book.

[MacK · Rating 4 out of 5]

This year I was up to my eyeballs in To Kill a Mockingbird. Knowing that it was more challenging than many of my 9th graders were ready for I put just about everything I had into making it easier to comprehend.

And I failed.

Which is why, I Kill the Mockingbird was such a good book for me to read as a follow up (loathe as I was to spend yet more time thinking about the Everest in my curriculum). A sweet and sincere companion piece to Harper Lee's classic, Acampora doesn't mince words, he is an inveterate lover of books (particularly TKAM), but he doesn't deny the flaws, foibles and failures of it either. He pulls off a rare feet of making it feel fresh and engaged with a modern setting, building characters well, and inviting those who can grasp and admire this level of literature to challenge themselves to take on the big daddy of it all. Though the conflict is a little simple (and easily conquered), the energy is rare to behold.

[Kelley · Rating 3 out of 5]

I laughed so many times while reading this book! I absolutely love the chapter titles, "Literary Terrorists Need Office Skills", for example.

Three kids receive their summer reading list from their 9th grade English teacher. They must choose four to read over the summer. Lucy is furious over the list because their teacher, Fat Bob, was going to make them read only "To Kill a Mockingbird" over the summer. Unfortunately, he died in the cafeteria on Halloween!

This is the story of how three (almost) freshmen made people believe that "To Kill a Mockingbird" was disappearing and no one would ever be able to read the book again.

It's a quick entertaining read. Anything that will get kids to laugh and read is OK by me!

[DaNae · Rating 5 out of 5]

My plan was to be more judicious in my stars this year and not throw out fives like wrapped candy in a parade. But with I KILL THE MOCKINGBIRD it just can't be helped. This is so very much my favorite kind of book. Witty and enthusiastic characters, clever dialogue (but not outside the range of the character's age) and a diabolical caper. It is also a rare middle-grade book, sensibility wise, with older characters.