The Help

by Kathryn Stockett

Electronic resource

English language

Published April 13, 2011 by Berkley Books.

ISBN:: 978-1-4406-9766-1
OCLC Number:: 934802500

Aibileen is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who’s always taken orders quietly, but lately she’s unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She’s full of ambition, but without a husband, she’s considered a failure.

Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town…

source: www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/303357/the-help-by-kathryn-stockett/9781440697661

24 editions

Kadomi reviewed The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Review of 'The Help' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

Loved it. A very emotional story set in Jackson, Mississipi in the early 60s. We get three different PoVs: Aibileen and Minny, two black maids, and Skeeter, a white young woman who starts a project of interviewing maids about their work to make it as a big time author.

The only thing I found a bit grating at times was the dialect all the black characters used, whereas all white women spoke flawlessly. A bit too much. Other than that, it was a lovely read.

Rob Warner reviewed The Help by Kathryn Stockett

Review of 'The Help' on 'Goodreads'

5 stars

I found myself hoping that the people in the book were paper-thin caricatures of the Old South, but news reports from that time period indicate that Stockett is likely true to period sentiments. I also found myself projecting the tale to a much earlier time than the 1960s, that surely by the 1960s people weren't so base, but again history trips me up. I found this depressing, as well as an indication that we're not so very different from current-day terrorists that we despise and fear. Man's capacity for evil to man is staggering.

That said, however, this book celebrates bravery and standing for something and accepting the consequences. It moves well, reads well, and makes you want to be both braver and better.