Harper Lee ‘happy as hell’

Author Harper Lee has said she is “happy as hell” about the publication of a sequel to her bestseller To Kill A Mockingbird after concerns were raised about the extent of her involvement in the project.

The reclusive 88-year-old suffered a stroke in 2007 and was reported to have gone blind and The Washington Post reported “questions have been raised about how much control Lee is exercising” over the new book.

Some have expressed concerns that Lee is “being exploited” in this deal, coming as it does a mere two months after the death of her sister Alice, to whom she was particularly close and who advised her about the full range of contracts, finances and rights.