The Help

The Help was filled with humor and heartbreak; at times it made me laugh and others it made me cry. I constantly felt like I was in the book with the characters, and I even felt the things they felt. It was the perfect book to cuddle up with on a Sunday and read for hours. This fiction book was was heartwarming, motivating and it gave insight on how people lived in Jackson, Mississippi in 1962.

This book is told from the perspective of three very different ladies. Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan is fresh out of college and wants to be a writer, although her mom has very different plans for her. She wants her to find a rich Southern boy from a good family and get married. Skeeter belongs to a group of ladies that gather together weekly to play bridge. But everyone knows they do more than play bridge. They banish others, spread rumors, and humiliate their black maids or "help." Skeeter is sick and tired of the way her "friends" treat others and dreams up a dangerous idea that could change Jackson for the better.

Aibleen Clark is a fifty-something woman who works for Elizabeth Leefolt, one of Skeeter's close friends. Aibleen has spent almost all of her life raising white ladies children, and at times she's much more of a mom than their actual moms. AiIbleen does her best to teach each child kindness, respect, and that colors of skin do not matter. But, she knows every child will end up being just like their mommas, including the child she's currently raising, Mae Mobley.

One day after a bridge meeting, Skeeter finds Aibleen in the kitchen cleaning up. Skeeter stops to say hello and asks Aibleen if she’s really okay with the way things are or if she wants things to change. Aibleen is so surprised by what Skeeter has asked her. White people and black people never talk, especially not about these things. Aibileen quickly responds that things are all right, but she can’t stop thinking about Skeeter’s question. At first, she thinks it’s an impossible suggestion, but as Aibileen reflects on how mistreated she's been in her life, she begins to change her mind.

Skeeter comes up with a plan that could not only change the way things are but also launch her career as a writer. Skeeter has decided it's about time someone told the other side of the story. She asks Aibleen to tell her the truth about what working for a white woman is like. It takes Aibleen a long time, but she finally warms up to the idea. She feels so freed by writing her own story that she wants to recruit her friends to the project.

The ladies have a very hard time finding others to participate. What they are doing isn't exactly allowed. If they are discovered, everything is at risk--the black ladies jobs, families, and even their lives. Finally, Aibleen's good friend Minny (the third narrator) agrees to help, despite her stubbornness and fear. Minny has a very big mouth and has been fired from more jobs than she can count.

Sketter, Aibleen, and Minny are a very unlikely trio but surprisingly they work very well together. They prove to themselves and others that women can connect, no matter what their color is. As they collect stories from more and more ladies, they are really affected by what they hear. The possibility of freedom is something they think about often.

The women start this project with the hope that the book will be published and will change something in Jackson and throughout the whole country. Regardless of the results, the process of sharing their stories and the journey they take together is more than enough. These three woman learn more about themselves than any of them every expected.

I loved reading this book and getting to know the women in it. You get to understand the circumstance from three different peoples perspectives and it really adds to the story. The author, Kathryn Stockett, gives Minny and Aibleen black southern accents that you can almost hear while reading.

I give this book an A. I couldn't put it down the whole time I was reading it. It presented sad stories that still left a great glimmer of hope. I loved reading about these three women who had the courage to do something--who had the courage to make a change. While this is a serious book, it also has wonderfully lighthearted moments, humorous moments, and very funny insights into women and their behavior. If you are looking for a good book, I highly recommend this one!