Discover the Intriguing World of Harper Lee: Top 6 Unforgettable Fun Facts

1. Lawyer Turned Author

Before Atticus Finch swooped in to save the day in Maycomb County, his creator Harper Lee was on track to don the lawyer cape herself: Lee briefly attended law school in the 1940s, but ultimately traded in courtroom battles for the world of writing, eventually penning the iconic novel "To Kill a Mockingbird" and introducing us to the noble lawyer Finch who defends an innocent man in a racially charged trial.
Source => britannica.com

2. Capote and Lee's Unbreakable Bond

Navigating the choppy waters of friendship, Capote and Lee were bound by more than just ink; once upon a Monroeville, Truman's tale-telling cohort was more than just a killer mockingbird: Harper Lee's real name was Nelle, she and Truman Capote were childhood friends, and she was awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by President George W. Bush in 2007.
Source => smh.com.au

Did you know Mark Twain's pen name has a fascinating connection to his steamboat pilot days on the Mississippi River? Discover the story behind "mark twain" and the riverboat call for safe water depth.

=> Fun Facts about Mark-Twain

3. Lee: The Literary Sherlock Holmes

Before crime-solving novelists became TV detectives, Harper Lee was lowkey cracking true-crime mysteries like a literary Sherlock Holmes: Harper Lee was deeply involved with Truman Capote's famous work “In Cold Blood,” accompanying him to Kansas, conducting interviews, taking detailed notes, and even secretly penning an anonymous article promoting Capote's ongoing work – with her authorship only revealed in 2016.
Source => biography.com

4. Crime-Fighting Wordsmith

It's no mystery that Harper Lee had a flair for the criminal: This wordsmith crimefighter assisted her lifelong buddy Truman Capote in the research for "In Cold Blood" and even channeled her inner Sherlock Holmes by investigating an infamous Alabama preacher's murderous misdeeds for a book that never saw daylight.
Source => theguardian.com

5. Lee's Flighty Fiction Journey

Who says you've got to be flighty to have a flair for fiction? Harper Lee might have mocked birds, but she sure took off in other ways: From dabbles in publishing short stories in magazines like Vogue and McCall's, to manning the lines as an airline reservationist, and even soaring to the high stakes world of crime researching, Lee's contribution to Truman Capote's "In Cold Blood" is one for the literary record books.
Source => en.wikipedia.org

6. Recluse's Medal of Freedom Surprise

Like a mysterious author version of Carmen Sandiego emerging from the shadows for a surprise-charged razzle-dazzle: Harper Lee, renowned recluse, stepped forth in 2007 to accept her Presidential Medal of Freedom from George W. Bush, sans speech, but later sharing a humble statement of gratitude and acknowledging the monumental impact of To Kill a Mockingbird on American literature.
Source => publishersweekly.com