We saw Uncle Jack every Christmas, and every Christmas he yelled across the street for Miss Maudie to come marry him. Miss Maude would yell back, "Call a little louder, Jack Finch, and they'll hear you the post office, I haven't heard you yet!" Jem and I thought this is a strange way to ask for a lady's hand in marriage, but then again Uncle Jack was rather strange.

— Harper Lee

Whatever she says to you, it’s your job not to let her make you mad.

— Harper Lee

When a child asks you something, answer him, for goodness’ sake. But don’t make a production of it. Children are children, but they can spot an evasion quicker than adults, and evasion simply muddles ‘em. No, you had the right answer this afternoon, but the wrong reasons. Bad language is a stage all children go through, and it dies with time when they learn they’re not attracting attention with it. Hotheadedness isn’t.

— Harper Lee

When a child asks you something, answer him, for goodness’s sake. But don't make a production of it. Children are children, but they can spot an evasion faster than adults, and evasion simply muddles 'em.

— Harper Lee

(...) when a man's looking down the double barrel of a shotgun, he picks up the first weapon he can find to defend himself, be it a stone or a stick of stove wood or a citizens' council.

— Harper Lee

When Henry handed her a cup of punch she whispered, "If you want to go on with the seniors or anything I'll be alright." Henry smiled at her. "You're my date, Scout.

— Harper Lee

Whether Maycomb knows it or not, we're paying the highest tribute we can pay a man. We trust him to do right. It's that simple.'' Who?' Aunt Alexandra never knew she was echoing her twelve-year-old nephew.' The handful of people in this town who that that fair play is not marked White Only; the handful of people who say a fair trial is for everybody, not just us; the handful of people with enough humility to think, when they look at a Negro, there but for the Lord's kindness am I.

— Harper Lee

With him, life was routine; without him, life was unbearable.

— Harper Lee

You confused your father with God. You never saw him as a man with a man’s heart, and a man’s failings – I’ll grant you it may have been hard to see, he makes so few mistakes, but he makes ’em like all of us. Furthermore, you were an emotional cripple, leaning on him, getting answers from him, assuming that your answers would always be his answers.

— Harper Lee

You deny them hope... You are telling them that Jesus loves them, but not much.

— Harper Lee