Harper Lee was born in Monroeville, Alabama on April 28, 1926, 91 years ago today.  The author of To Kill a Mockingbird was famously publicity shy and rarely gave interviews, despite an endless barrage of requests.

This talk with a New York radio journalist -- just a few years after Mockingbird was published -- is the only known audio of Lee discussing her beloved novel about childhood, justice, and small-town life in Depression-era Alabama. 

In the interview, Lee talks about what she hoped to achieve as a writer, why so many great American authors are southerners, and her "numbness" at To Kill a Mockingbird's success.