Consider Lynda Rutledge’s description of the setting at the beginning of the novel. In what ways does the social environment that Corky grows up in define her character arc? Cite specific examples from the text to support your argument.

Analyze the novel’s exploration of Coming of Age in a Transformative Era—in this case, the 1960s. Why is this decade crucial for Corky’s transformation? What perspective does Rutledge give on the ways history impacts personality and character?

Rutledge’s novel is an homage to Harper Lee’s 1960 novel, To Kill a Mockingbird. Identify the ways in which Mockingbird Summer borrows from Lee’s narrative to undergird its own themes.