Skip to main content

To Kill a Mockingbird Becomes a Graphic Novel

By September 10, 2018New Releases

Harper Lee’s To Kill a Mockingbird was first published in 1960 and is arguably one of the finest novels ever written. The book has been critically acclaimed for its exploration into racism, innocence, and justice, and it has more than earned the title of a modern classic.

If you’re a fan of the original novel, or you’re a comic book nerd who’s heard great things about the book, then you’ll be pleased to learn that To Kill a Mockingbird is being adapted into a 260 page graphic novel that follows the original story with beautiful illustrations.




The graphic novel is being worked on by British artist Fred Fordham however, hardcore fans of the novel will be reassured to learn that Fordham is the first to admit it’s no replacement for the original. As The Telegraph reports, Fordham stated he was approached in 2016 for the project with a “spy novel atmosphere” of secrecy. He described the job as “pretty daunting”. “It’s almost considered more than a novel – it’s a cultural event,” he said.

Fordham prepared for the task by visiting Lee’s hometown of Monroeville, Alabama, which inspired the book’s town of Maycomb. The endorsement of the Lee estate and the excellent dialogue found in the book helped convince Fordham a graphic novel adaptation could work.

Fordham was quick to make it clear that this new version should not be seen as a condensed or lightweight version of the original. “I read it at school and then again at University,” he said. “To try and do a graphic adaptation of something solely to make it easier to read is almost certainly going to do a disservice to the original novel, and it does also to the graphic novel too in a way because it’s treating it as kind of kid gloves version. This should be read as well as, not instead of.”

To Kill a Mockingbird follows the trial of a black man who is wrongly accused of raping a white woman through the eyes of his lawyer’s young daughter Scout. The book mixes both humour and optimism with very dark themes such as racism, injustice, and violence. “The themes, of course, are excruciating; you have to be very careful not to flinch from that,” said Mr Fordham. “In so many ways it’s very easy to read; bits of it are light and funny. But so much of it is so much more harrowing than the child’s eyes through which we are seeing it are able to fully comprehend.”

Fordham has gone to great lengths to make the graphic novel feel as authentic as possible. During his trip to Monroeville, he took sketches of the buildings there in order to make the town of Maycomb feel more authentic in his novel. “Everything about the structure of the town in the book is Monroeville – it was pretty striking,” he said. “I hadn’t realised that it is more like a fictionalised autobiography.”

Harper Lee’s original novel sells over 1 million copies a year and has been translated into over 40 languages. The graphic novel is set to be released later this year on 30 October.



Leave your vote

Add to Collection

No Collections

Here you'll find all collections you've created before.