Monday, July 4, 2011

my latest read



This book was such an incredible read, drawing you in from the first page.   The Help, by Kathryn Stockett is a story set in Jackson, Mississippi in 1962.  The novel is narrated by three extraordinary women, each telling their own story of heartbreak, struggles and sorrow.   Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan, a white upper-class woman, who has just returned home from school and has a very rocky relationship with her mother whose determined to see her daughter married.   Aibileen, a fifty-something black woman and maid is devoted to the little girl she looks after in between keeping house.   Aibileen nurtures sweet little Mae Mobley, giving her the love and attention she is starving for from her mother.   The last narrator is Minny, a short, plump and sassy woman and dear friend to Aibileen.  Minny lives in a abusive marriage, cooks like no other, yet can’t keep her mouth shut and has lost many jobs due to speaking what’s on her mind. 

The Help is a novel that so eloquently paints a picture of a time in history where civil rights and change were very controversial.  Jackson was not forward thinking was not about to embrace the civil rights movement.  The stories these three women tell are poignant and heartbreaking yet filled with humour and hope.  The Help is a read that will draw you in until you reach it’s last page.  It’s a read that I highly recommend throwing into your beach bag this summer!

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