Harper Lee's novel is considered an American classic. Set in the 1930s during the Great Depression in the United States, it was a time of excessive poverty and daily struggle for many. The book tells the early story of Jean Louise Finch (Scout) and her brother Jeremy Finch (Jem) as they grew up in Maycomb County, Alabama. Told in the first person from Scout's point of view, it's a great way to convey the feelings she's struggling with as well as conveying the events that unfold beautifully. Spanning a period of three years, the book addresses many of the issues children face growing up, including their thirst for knowledge and their thirst for knowledge. Additionally, Lee interweaves Scout and Jem's story with many larger issues of the time such as violence, prejudice, and social inequality. This review will first focus on the story and provide a summary of major events and turning points before moving on to examine the themes and deeper meaning of the book and the messages, if any, that Lee was trying to convey to the reader. The novel is wonderfully constructed in two parts. The first concerns the presentation of the characters to the reader and their context. The two children live with their lawyer father Atticus who receives help with their education and household chores from their servant Calpurnia, a woman of color. The sleepy street that Scout and Jem inhabit with their father Atticus has a number of residents who are described to us individually. The most important of these is the Radley family who live a few doors down from the Finches. The Radleys are a family shrouded in mystery as they seem to live eccentric lives. They make no effort to engage middle of paper...yes, Nome, just a lady. This shows the pressure placed on Scout by the arrival of Aunt Alexandra and how she begins to conform to the gender role her aunt wants her to fulfill. Scout is not allowed to have her own dreams if they don't fit into the structured life of a Southern lady. The character of Atticus is probably the most important in the novel as far as themes go. He is surrounded by prejudice in everyday life, from seeing his daughter being told she must fulfill her gender role to trying to defend Tom Robinson against accusations stemming from his race . However, it is through the character of Atticus that Lee presents another major theme of the novel, the inherent goodness of man. Final theme; Loss of childhood innocence, displayed through the narrative and signaled by the scouts' understanding that Boo Radley gets away with crime.