3.5 stars. 
 I read this novel pretty quickly. When I first started reading, it seemed like it might be difficult to get through because the language and descriptions were tough for me to follow. Eventually, though, I came to appreciate what Harper Lee had done with this story. 
 Jean Louise ("Scout"), in her mid-twenties, returns home to Maycomb, Alabama for a visit from New York City. She discovers that the whole town seemed to have undergone a big change since she left. (view spoiler)[Most of the town, including her father, Atticus Finch, are holding meetings to discuss what to do about Negroes and the future of Maycomb. Jean Louise has a breakdown when she witnesses her father introduce a speaker at one of these meetings who turns out to be a racist. 
 I think what I enjoyed most about this novel is the parallel between what Dr. Finch, Jean Louise's uncle and Atticus' brother, calls Jean Louise's reliance on her father and readers' (of To Kill a Mockingbird) adoration of Atticus Finch. I don't have a copy of the novel next to me, but I wish I could type out the entire scene where he describes how he and Atticus both knew that Jean Louise would have to separate herself and her conscience from that of her father at some point. She built up Atticus to be a god in her mind--an infallible person and, in effect, for her he became her conscience as well. Once I read that scene, the my view of the entire book changed for the better. (hide spoiler)] 
 I love Mockingbird as much as the next person and I don't think this novel could ever compare to that. And come on, how can we not compare the two? I think Harper Lee's masterful writing skill and strong intellect shows in this novel and I also think that one day I'd like to buy both novels as a set.