BATH

At 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 12, Patten Free Library will host a public viewing of “Hey, Boo: Harper Lee & To Kill a Mockingbird,” a film by Mary McDonagh Murphy. Admission and refreshments are free. This is the last in the summer series of events cosponsored by the Library and The Mustard Seed Bookstore to mark the publication of Harper Lee’s new novel, “Go Set a Watchman.” Additional programs are scheduled for September and October.

After 55 years, “To Kill a Mockingbird” remains a beloved bestseller and quite possibly the most influential American novel of the 20th century. Nearly 1 million copies are sold each year, and the novel has been translated into more than 40 languages. The film version, starring Gregory Peck as Atticus Finch, won a trio of Academy Awards.

Behind it all was a young Southern girl named Nelle Harper Lee, who once said that all she wanted to be is the Jane Austen of South Alabama. “ Hey, Boo” explores Lee’s life and unravels some of the mysteries surrounding her, including why she never published again.

Containing never-beforeseen photos and letters and a rare interview with Lee’s sister, Alice Finch Lee, the film also brings to light the context and history of the novel’s setting in the deep south and the social changes it inspired.

Tom Brokaw, Rosanne Cash, Wally Lamb, Anna Quindlen, Richard Russo, Scott Turow, Oprah Winfrey, Andrew Young and others reflect on the novel’s power, influence, and popularity, and the many ways it has shaped their lives.