Harper Lee died last month as a relative mystery in the publishing world, one who gave few interviews during the course of her lifetime and fewer hints as to what she ever wanted. There's little knowledge on Lee's behavior, quirks, life, beliefs, or the wishes for her estate after she died. Even Lee's last will was sealed by a judge in Alabama, keeping the public eye away from the Harper Lee enigma once again.
Now, Lee's estate--through a request made by the estate's lawyer, Tonja Carter--has demanded book publishing house Hachette cease selling its mass-market paperback edition of To Kill a Mockingbird, which is the most popular choice in schools across America. This means the cheapest version of the book, usually sold at $8.99, will no longer exist as of April 25th. Instead, the cheapest edition will now be paperback varieties costing $14.99 and $16.99.
What this means for Lee's estate is the potential for higher royalties from future book sales. What this means is a school likely won't make the book required reading much longer. What this means is a child no longer reads the book.
What this means is greed wins.
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