The Help by Kathryn Stockett.
Enter a vanished world: Jackson, Mississippi, 1962. Where black maids raise white children, but aren't trusted not to steal the silver.
There's Aibileen raising her seventeenth white child and nursing the hurt caused by her own son's tragic death; Minny whose cooking is nearly as sassy as her tongue; and white Miss Skeeter, home from college, who wants to know why her beloved maid has disappeared.
No one would believe they would be friends; fewer still would tolerate it. But as each woman finds the courage to cross boundaries, they come to depend and rely upon one another. Each is in search of a truth. And together they have an extraordinary story to tell.
This book was read as part of my monthly book group. There are four of us and each month one person takes a turn to select five books, sometimes with an underlying theme, sometimes books just on the shelf and then the rest of the group select their top 3. The one with the most votes wins and it is as simple as that. We then meet up about 4 weeks later to talk about the book.
I have to admit that this was not my first choice for this month's book group. I had heard rave reviews about it but was not sure it was really something I would be interested in and too much hype often tends to put me off books. However, once I got into this book I was entranced! One Sunday afternoon I spent 3 hours straight absorbed in the unfamiliar but utterly engrossing portrayal of life in a Southern town in 60's America.
The story is told by the three main characters Aibileen, Minny and Skeeter and the book takes you through the turn of events in Jackson, Mississippi through each of their eyes. As the story develops you feel as if you know these people intimately, like they were your closest friends. I could see myself sat at Aibileen's kitchen table while she wrote her prayers, hiding in the larder closet with Miss Skeeter as she conducted telephone conversations in secret away from the nosy attentions of her ever critical mother and cringing as Minny humiliates her former bosses daughter in the most disgusting but hilarious way!
This book taught me so much that I didn't know about the ways in which white owners treated their black maids and the utter ignorance they had about black people. The fact they thought they could catch diseases from them just by using the same toliets or eating at the same table was astounding. And despite the book focusing mainly on the main characters there are references to the important historical events of the civil rights struggle, although suprisling despite being set around 1963 there is only a very brief mention of the death of JFK. More is devoted to the murder of black civil rights activist Medgar Evans, emphasising that this book is more about the often forgotten voices of the everyday black people fighting an ongoing struggle.
I thought Kathryn Stockett had done an excellent job in portraying the friendships between people in times of segregation and I found her brief article at the back of the book about her own maid Demetrie rather affecting. One must note that a lawsuit was brought against Kathryn by Aibilene Cooper, a housekeeper for the household of Kathryn's brother, who claimed that Kathryn had used her image, likeness and background without permission. This case was thrown out by a judge on 16th August. Make of it what you will.
Have you read this book or are you reading it? What did you think of it? I would love to hear your thoughts, don't be shy!
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