Washington: President Barack Obama was one of those many Americans whom honoured and mourned the demise of author Harper Lee, announced on February 19.
The author of ‘To Kill a Mocking Bird’, who died at the age of 89, was once declared by the US president as an author “who changed America for the better” with her works, reports the Guardian.
The Obama family in a statement said Lee never wrote ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ for an award or famer, rather “she was a country girl who just wanted to tell an honest story about life as she saw it.”
“But what that one story did, more powerfully than one hundred speeches possibly could, was change the way we saw each other, and then the way we saw ourselves,” the statement added.
Former US president George W Bush, who awarded the author the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007 in one of the most public outings of her later years, released a statement saying, “Harper Lee was ahead of her time and her masterpiece To Kill a Mockingbird prodded America catch up with her.”
Hailed as a brilliant writer and an extraordinary person, she was honoured by friends, families and every person across the globe who was inspired by her simplicity and honesty.
“Knowing Nelle these past few years has been not just an utter delight but an extraordinary privilege,” said her literary agent, Andrew Nurnberg, in a statement.
Mourning on the death of the most famous author of the publishing house, the president and publisher of HarperCollins US, Michael Morrison, said that the world knows Harper Lee was a brilliant writer but “what many don’t know is that she was an extraordinary woman of great joyfulness, humility and kindness.”
Aaron Sorkin, the writer of ‘The West Wing’ and ‘The Social Network’ who last week announced that he was working on a Broadway adaption of Lee’s Pulitzer-winning 1960 novel about racial prejudice in the American south, told, “I was saddened to learn this morning of the passing of Harper Lee, one of America’s most beloved authors.”
Media mogul Oprah Winfrey took to her Twitter handle to say,”Harper Lee my 1st favorite author! I always wanted to interview her. She said” honey I already said everything I had to say”. #RIPHarperLee”
Ava DuVernay, director of the civil rights drama Selma, shared a still from the 1962 film adaption of ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’ starring Gregory Peck on Twitter and wrote, “You never really understand a person. until you climb into his skin and walk around in it.” Thank you, #HarperLee.”
Former US president George W Bush, who awarded the author the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2007 in one of the most public outings of her later years, released a statement saying, “Harper Lee was ahead of her time, and her masterpiece To Kill a Mockingbird prodded America catch up with her.”
Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook also paid tribute to the author with one of her own quotes over twitter, “Rest in peace, Harper Lee. “The one thing that doesn’t abide by majority rule is a person’s conscience.””
Science fiction author Stephen King acknowledged Lee’s great contribution to Truman Capote’s non-fiction crime classic In Cold Blood and wrote on his twitter handle, “Let’s celebrate the life of Harper Lee, who wrote an American classic and helped her friend Truman Capote write another.”
Not saying much about the reason of the death, publishing house HarperCollins released a statement on February 19 confirming her death which said “died peacefully last night.” (ANI)