Big money and bigger doubts ahead of Harper Lee’s lost novel debut

The literary world is poised for what many are calling the biggest book event of the decade, the July 14 publication of Harper Lee’s long-lost first novel, “Go Set a Watchman.” Lee has not published a book since 1960, when she wrote “To Kill a Mockingbird.” The novel was an instant sensation, won the 34-year-old author a Pulitzer Prize and was later made into an Academy Award-winning movie. Fans gave up long ago on the hope that it would be followed by a second book, and Lee herself reportedly told friends she could never complete another novel. When the lost manuscript, the precursor to “Mockingbird,” was found, anticipation reached a fever pitch — as did concern over the author’s true wishes. It looked like there would be no second act for Lee.

All I want to be is the Jane Austen of southern Alabama.

Harper Lee told Roy Newquist in a taped radio conversation in 1964, her last formal interview

But that all changed last February when publishing house Harper Collins announced that a new book had been discovered. Lee had moved back to Monroeville after suffering a stroke and was in an assisted-living facility. Tonja Carter, Lee’s lawyer, said she had found the manuscript for “Go Set a Watchman” last August in a safe-deposit box. The controversy over the discovery of “Watchman” ratcheted up a notch recently, bringing into question exactly when the manuscript was discovered. Meanwhile, the controversy has not put a damper on readers’ interest and booksellers’ promotions. Barnes and Noble, with 648 stores, is promoting “Watchman” by reintroducing “Mockingbird,” which has enjoyed a big boost in sales. The long-awaited sequel will be released July 14.

During my time in the meeting no one said, and it never occurred to me, that there appeared to be a manuscript of a second book in the safe-deposit box.

Tonja Carter, Lee’s lawyer, wrote in a statement

Arts go set a watchman