The Help

Here is a great book with a great message done in a way that is not over the top. For those that have seen the movie especially, this is something up your alley.

For those that are unfamiliar to The Help, it talks about an issue that is not so much in the forefront of the Civil Rights Movement: the maids. The book has separated chapters for three different voices that give their view on the dangerous process of writing an anonymous book chronicling their lives as maids, good and bad, and one who was more than willing to risk being cast out of her social circle for it, even if it stung tremendously.

I loved the different voices that were used; all three were women that were independent and strong in their own right with different levels of care and ways of showing it. I liked how relatable Skeeter is, how you go away to college and are the only one who stuck with it to the end, like going on your path instead of being on the set path that everyone around you went on. The thing with being gone from your normalcy for a long time, is that when you finally get back to it with your new worldview, you notice more quickly the flaws that you were surrounded by. I appreciate that most in Skeeter. I liked that there was someone more soft (Abileen) and someone more hard (Minny) to reach, because when it comes to bringing awareness to issues, that is the reality of it; not everyone will jump on your bandwagon immediately. An issue has to hit a person hard enough for them to notice and take action.

Write about what disturbs you, particularly if it bothers no one else.

page 83

That was probably the biggest thing for me; I liked how real it was, and not just because of where it took place in history. Every character was realistic in attitude and the brevity of what was going on in their world. It was not something that changed the entirety of the world like you encounter in some movies and books, but it was a great example of making a small difference for who it impacts the most directly.

I would read this again, and I would recommend this to anyone, really. I even believe that this is a book where if you are a parent looking to introduce the Civil Rights Movement in a more subtle way to your kid, this has good potential to be included. I do not believe there were discussion questions included in my copy, but I would not doubt this is, or can be, something worth discussing.

If you are interested in The Help, you will be able to find it here.

10/10