The Friday 56: 'The Land of Sweet Forever' by Harper Lee

Happy November, my fellow book bloggers, avid bibliophiles, and casual page-flippers! After a few weeks of radio silence on the Friday 56 front—a little break that I convinced myself would lighten the load of weekly posts—I’m back from a brief hiatus. This past week, I took some much-needed time off to recuperate from a relentless flu bug and a shoulder and back injury that made me feel like I’d gone a few rounds with a particularly cranky poltergeist. Reading has been a struggle lately, and let’s face it, my literary journey has been more tortoise than hare. But fear not, I’m determined to rise like a phoenix from the ashes of my reading rut.

For those unfamiliar, 'The Friday 56' is an awesome meme hosted by My Head is Full of Books, where we gather snippets from our current reads to share with our fellow bookworms. This week, I’m featuring The Land of Sweet Forever by none other than Harper Lee, whose latest posthumous book combines eight newly unearthed short stories with eight essays and pieces that previously graced the pages of magazines. I had to hunt down a copy because my local bookstores seem to moonlight as YA fantasy museums, where dusty tomes sit neglected on the shelves like sad little orphans.

So here I am, eager to indulge in Lee's words, but I’m taking my sweet time—no speed-reading for this book! I want to savor every sentence. I’ve only made it through the introduction by Casey Cep, but I can already sense I’m in for a treat.

Here’s a little morsel to whet your appetite:

She had all her misfortunes packaged neatly and the blame affixed, but somehow she could not resist opening them and worrying the contents like her dogs worried their kibble.

— Lee, Harper. "A Roomful of Kibble." The Land of Sweet Forever, Harper, 2025, p. 56.

〜B.J. Burgess