The new novel by Harper Lee, “Go Set a Watchman”, is the sequel of her great “To Kill a Mockingbird”. At the center of the story are all the familiar characters, only now they are mature. The print-run has been incredible: more than two million copies to date — more than the last part of the Harry Potter series.

But why is the sequel to one of the most remarkable stories of the 20th century still so important, 55 years since the publication of the first one?

American Harper Lee has gained worldwide recognition as the great writer of her generation with one single novel, “To Kill a Mockingbird”. If someone has not read it, they have, for sure, seen the movie adaptation starring Gregory Peck. This book made Lee’s career and earned her the Pulitzer Prize, all the fees and the rights sales — everything that a writer can ever aspire to gain with their talent. It was enough for her, a statement so final, Lee had nothing to add. She quit writing and carefully avoided reporters in the decades that followed. To any questions about her writing plans, the answer was always the same: Harper Lee will never write again because her pen has “frozen”.

Only recently Lee has agreed to publish her second novel “Go Set a Watchman”. The concept behind it was to revisit the lives of her beloved protagonists – the lawyer Atticus Finch and his daughter Scout. And what a remarkable return this has been. This book was completed as early as 1950, even before the final draft of “Mockingbird” — but her publisher insisted that Lee shouldn’t come out with it, and she surrendered.

Another reason for such unprecedented success is the gossip that the novel entailed.

Several critics have disputed the fact that Lee went on with the publication voluntarily. Some of them had speculated on the mediocrity of the story and the fact that it’s utterly dependent on “Mockingbird” — even before they had a chance to read the text.

It is true that Lee had rewritten her first novel several times. She had changed leads to the key plot twists, even the narrator’s position. So there was a speculation that the first draft, an alternate universe of “To Kill a Mockingbird” would become the sequel. However, this hypothesis is refuted once you start reading “Go Set a Watchman.”

In “To Kill a Mockingbird” Harper Lee has registered many of the features of the American fifties and managed to capture the spirit of the time. The struggle of the black American population for equality has a central place in the book. And the rape case that became the core issue of the plot was based on numerous real precedents where African-Americans were accused of similar crimes just because of the color of their skin. A look at the history of the 20th century through the perspective of fiction is a great deal and an important point of view. “Go set a watchman,” however, has gotten rid of the idealized opinions from the previous novel. And this helps make the world that Lee has created more accomplished and believable.

The title “Go Set a Watchman” comes from the Book of Isaiah. In this part of the Old Testament, the prophet assuages people as they await the inevitable misfortunes of their future. But it is no reason to be afraid, the book is free from the holy scripture’s moralism. There is, however, an improvement on the ideas of “To Kill a Mockingbird”, the great classic novel of the mid-20th century.

Harper Lee’s return takes a very special place in the epic history of comebacks. The last time we had seen such a glorious return of a universally recognized star, it was Michael Jordan. Now Jean Louise Finch, all grown up, arrives home from New York to see her father, Atticus Finch. But not another word is to be said. Read, find out yourself, and enjoy.