To Kill a Mockingbird Summaries

Chapter 1

Summaries:

1. Jem broke his arm at the elbow, but when the injury healed, he was not embarrassed by the fact that one arm was shorter than the other.
2. The chapter also mentions the origins of the Finch family and the upbringing of Scout and Jem’s father, Atticus Finch.
3. On the summer when scout was almost six and Jem was about ten, the two were introduced to Dill. Prediction: The kids will probably continue to mess with Boo Radley, because they all seem very interested in his “story”.

Chapter 2

Summaries:

1. Dill leaves Maycomb County, and returns to Meridian.
2. Scout is told not to be taught by her father anymore, after Miss Caroline learned that Scout knew how to read.
3. After Miss Caroline finds that Walter Cunningham has no lunch money, she discovers that Walter’s family does not have enough money to support him with money for lunch. Prediction: Scout will probably get punished multiple times throughout the year, because her conduct seems out of control.

Chapter 3

Summaries:

1. Scout fights Walter Cunningham in the Schoolyard for not having lunch money.
2. Jem invites Walter to dinner after breaking up the fight he was in with Scout.
3. Miss Caroline throws a fit when a cootie comes from Burris Ewell’s hair, and insists on sending him home. Prediction: The Ewell family will probably return and cause a huge ruckus, because of the humdrum just one of the Ewells stirred up.

Chapter 4

Summaries:

1. Scout finds Wrigley’s Double Mint gum inside a tree just outside of the Radley residence.
2. Jem and Scout also find old Indian-Head coins from the same tree.
3. Dill comes back to Maycomb for the summer, and the three kids make up a new game: Boo Radley. Prediction: Dill will probably come down to Maycomb every summer, because it seems as though he will continue to develop as a main character throughout the book.

Chapter 5

Summaries:

1. In chapter 5, Miss Maudie is more formally introduced as a kind woman that hates her house.
2. Miss Maudie tells the children more about Boo or Arthur Radley, and disproves all the myths that the children have heard.
3. The three kids write a letter in hopes that Boo would introduce himself, but Atticus catches them. Prediction: The kids will somehow get Boo Radley to come out, because they seem extremely persistent in their goal.

Chapter 6

Summaries:

1. At the start of the Chapter, Jem, Scout, and Dill peer through the windows on the Radley house, in hopes of seeing Boo.
2. While the kids were trespassing, Nathan Radley walks out and blasts a shotgun shot, and it stirs the whole neighborhood.
3. When Jem was running away, his pants were caught in a fence, and when Atticus finds the kids, Jem claims that his pants were lost in strip poker. Prediction: Nathan Radley is probably going to be a problem for the kids, because he seems like he is trying to hide Boo from the outside world.

Chapter 7

Summaries:

1. After the pants incident, Jem is alarmingly quiet for about a week, and later tells Scout that his pants were folded and sowed, like the Radleys were expecting him to return for his pants.
2. Second grade started for Scout, and she firmly believes that it is worse than first grade, as she is still not allowed to read or write.
3. Nathan Radley filled the tree that gum was found in with cement. Prediction: As a result of the tree being filled, the kids probably will not find any more gifts, because there would be nowhere to hide them.

Chapter 8

Summaries:

1. In this chapter, Maycomb actually experienced a winter, and the weather was the coldest it had been since 1885.
2. Miss Maudie’s house catches fire; the entire neighborhood goes to help extinguish the fire.
3. While Scout is in the shivering cold, Boo Radley kindly wraps her with a blanket. Prediction: As Boo’s character continues to develop, he will likely be looked at differently, because he seems kind, contrary to popular opinion.

Chapter 9

Summaries:

1. We get knowledge of whom Atticus is defending in court; a black man named Tom Robinson.
2. Cecil Jacobs continues to taunt Scout with the fact that Atticus is defending a “negroe”.
3. After being teased about Atticus by Francis, Scout had finally had enough, and started wailing on him with her fists. Prediction: By the end of the book, Scout will probably have much better self-control, because she seems to have a lot of “lessons” regarding it.

Chapter 10

Summaries:

1. Scout and Jem experience with their air-rifles, and are told that it is ok to shoot at birds, “but it’s a sin to kill a mockingbird”.
2. Tim Johnson, a rabid neighborhood dog, is shot and killed by Atticus.
3. The kids learn a little bit about Atticus’s past, when Sheriff Heck Tate explains the nickname “One-Shot Finch”, a nickname for Atticus’s deadeye shooting. Prediction: As the book progresses, Jem and Scout will learn more and more about Atticus’ past, because this seems like just a start to what they might learn.

Chapter 11

Summaries:

1. Early in Chapter 11, we gain knowledge about Mrs. Dubose, a mean elderly woman than torments Jem and Scout.
2. After Mrs. Dubose insults Atticus and his job, Jem, in a fit of rage, cuts down her camellia bushes with Scout’s baton.
3. Jem apologizes to Mrs. Dubose, and, as a penance, has to read to her every Saturday. Prediction: Jem will probably form some type of bond with Mrs. Dubose, because he has to spend a considerable amount of time with her.

Chapter 12 Summaries:

1. Dill did not come that summer, as he was building a new fishing boat with his new father.
2. Calpurnia takes the children to her church for a Sunday service, where a collection is held to help fund the Robinson family and their needs.
3. The children learn that Calpurnia is from the Finch Landing, and that she’s worked for the Finches for years. Prediction: The black population will probably show a lot of support toward the Finches during the Tom Robinson ordeal, because they seem honored to have the Finch children at their church.

Chapter 13

Summaries:

1. The Children learn that Aunt Alexandria will be living with them for a while, as Atticus will be busy with his case.
2. The children meet their cousin, Lily Brooke, during a woman’s meeting hosted at their house.
3. Scout learns that Aunt Alexandria is also staying with them to help her become more ladylike, and to live up to the Finch name. Prediction: At the end of the book, we will likely find Scout in a more ladylike state, because of the help that Aunt Alexandria provides.

Chapter 14

Summaries:

1. Atticus vouches for Calpurnia to stay and help with the kids, after he defends her against Aunt Alexandria.
2. Dill comes with a surprise visit, after he runs away from his new family that supposedly hates him.
3. Dill and Scout discuss that his new family does not hate him; he simply does not get the attention he desires from having a family. Prediction: With Atticus busy with his case, the Children, along with Dill, will devise a plan to get Boo to come out, because Atticus will not be there to scold them.