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The Help
The #1 New York Times bestselling novel and basis for the Academy Award-winning film—a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don’t—nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read.
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...
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...
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Community Reviews
This was such a great book. Set in the Deep South 1964. A white southern lady works together with several black maids to write a book about their experiences working for the white families and raising their children.
I could not put this book down. Only when my own family pleaded me to make them some food did I put it down.
While reading it I kept getting the feeling like it was happening around 1912 then the author would mention something like Kennedyâs assassination or Bobbyâs new song The Times they are a changin or a new commercial for Shake N Bake â it smacked me in the face that it was happing around the time I was born.
I could not put this book down. Only when my own family pleaded me to make them some food did I put it down.
While reading it I kept getting the feeling like it was happening around 1912 then the author would mention something like Kennedyâs assassination or Bobbyâs new song The Times they are a changin or a new commercial for Shake N Bake â it smacked me in the face that it was happing around the time I was born.
I loved the book so much that I've read it more than once!
Each character spoke to something in me and I truly loved that, especially for the times that they were in.
My biggest critique always is that there is a savior complex brought on by someone who is our opressor and I just wish that wasn't such the strong central theme of the story.
This struck a deep chord with me, as I grew up in post-apartheid South Africa, where I witnessed similar societal divisions. The novel beautifully explores the complex relationships between domestic workers and their employers, echoing the way we often see those who serve us as family yet less than ourselves. The poignant portrayal of race, power, and human dignity left me reflecting on how societal systems continue to shape our perceptions of worth. This book is a powerful reminder of the importance of empathy and equality. it had me laughing in some instance and crying in others, a powerful emotional pull on every page. I loved the writing style and the African-American dialect and humour that was portrayed so respectfully and celebratorily. This one will stay with me long after I've closed the book.
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