The Help: A Book Review

I haven’t done many book reviews on here because for whatever reason 2010 for me has been “Read the Least Amount of Books Possible Year”. I’m stumped as to how or why this has happened because I’m usually all about the reading.

A couple of weeks ago Ms. Claudette was riding with me from worship to our small group meeting and we were talking about books. Another lady at church had just returned Ms. Claudette’s copy of The Help and that’s how the conversation about books and reading got started. I had mentioned I had read some reviews by fellow bloggers about how much they loved the book and that I had it on my list of books to purchase from Amazon. She then offered to let me borrow it and I took her up on the offer. Ya’ll, this book was so stinkin’ good!

The book is about African American domestic workers in Mississippi in the early 1960s. I really don’t feel like I can tell much more than that. The book is written from the perspective of three different characters, Abilene (a maid), Minny (a maid) and Miss Skeeter (a white woman).

The book was riveting from the very beginning and I had a hard time putting it down. It was so well written and I enjoyed every word! I told Ms. Claudette when I returned the book that I can always tell how much I love what I’m reading by what I dream when I’m sleeping. I could not get this book out of my head and dreamt about the characters every night that I read the book. Another sign that I love a book is that I dread seeing it come to a close. When that happens, I know the characters have come off the page and are walking around inside my head and are as real as the people I see on a daily basis. I didn’t want the book to end and wondered what happened to each of the people in the book after the last page was written.

The book was written by Kathryn Stockett, a native Mississippian and an alumnus of the University of Alabama. This was Stockett’s first novel and she did an amazing job. The book is currently being made into a movie and the release date is set for August 12, 2011. I’m sure the movie will dim in comparison to this fantastic novel.

If you are looking for a good read or a book to buy the reader in your life for Christmas, see about purchasing this one or checking it out from your local library. It is so wonderful and you will not be disappointed.