The book Kathy Bates couldn’t live without: “The quintessential coming-of-age story”
Not everyone could make a book-loving nurse scary. That being said, Kathy Bates isn’t ‘everyone’. A generational talent, Bates is best-known for her work in the terrifying 1990 movie Misery.
As Annie Wilkes, she keeps author Paul Sheldon (James Caan) hostage in her remote cabin, threatening to keep him there until he changes the ending of her favourite series. She does some other stuff too, but that really isn’t suitable for a family broadcast.
Wilkes and Misery are, of course, products of the mind of Stephen King. His 1987 novel of the same name serves as the basis for Rob Reiner’s adaptation, although a few details were changed for the big screen. As well as Misery, Bates has appeared in a number of other films based on books. She played another King character, Dolores Claiborne, in the 1995 film of the same name, and has also featured in adaptations of Primary Colors, Fried Green Tomatoes, and Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret.
Speaking of books, it turns out that Bates is something of a bibliophile. Speaking to Radical Reads, the Oscar winner – who announced her retirement in 2024 – revealed a number of her favourite titles. She confirmed that he had a soft spot for one of the most treasured novels of all time: Harper Lee’s tale of racism in the South, To Kill a Mockingbird.
“This is my favourite book,” she said. “I’ve read it many times, often aloud. I find the rhythm of the language soothing, perhaps because, like Harper Lee, I’m a southerner. It is the quintessential coming-of-age story, set in a small southern town, in which racial injustice is seen through the clear eyes of a child. But it is also about the prejudices and preconceptions we all have of those who are different from ourselves. The story of Boo Radley, of course, is the most poignant example of this.”
To Kill a Mockingbird, one of two novels published by Lee during her lifetime, centres on the Finch family. Father Atticus is a lawyer tasked with defending Black man Tom Robinson against charges of raping a White woman. His daughter Scout, son Jem, and their friend Dill watch the trial unfold against a backdrop of deep-seated racism in their Alabama town. Bates was born in Tennessee, one of the states that shares a border with Alabama.
One of the many great scenes in the book is when Atticus shoots a rabid dog from some distance with a rifle, severely altering his previously squeaky-clean image. Finch is reluctant to kill the animal and reveal his handiness with a gun, but he knows it’s the right thing to do. This is often viewed as a metaphor for why he takes the Robinson case, and is probably why it’s one of Bates’ favourite parts of the book. It also forms a key part of the 1962 film adaptation of the story, for which Gregory Peck won an Oscar for playing Atticus.
It might seem like a fairly basic response, but To Kill a Mockingbird is a classic for a reason. Its themes are still highly relevant to this day and the story is told in such a concise, digestible manner that it’s just as accessible now as it was over six decades ago. Bates is very wise to champion it.
