The Help by Kathryn Sockett - Another "Sue and Charity Reading Club" selection, it was my turn to choose our recreational reading book of the moment. I'd gotten SO many recommendations from the staff at Loogootee who read this book, but I kept putting it off as it was a little larger than my weary eyes could embrace at the point in time. However, having moved and wishing to have something to occupy my poolside intentions for the remainder of the summer, it seemed like the perfect time to pick it up and commence reading. Little did I know that my intentions were lofty and poolside time was sparse. As a result it took me nearly two months to finish the book...yes, embarrassing to admit I realize. However, it worked as the book was incredibly compelling and well-written and being forced to take it in slowly in small chunks really helped me prolong a wonderful, wonderful experience and for that I am glad.
The book is set in Jackson, Mississippi, at the height of the civil rights era. The world is changing, Martin Luther King is marching on Washington, and in Jackson, black women still serve white women as if it were still the 1860s, not the 1960s. That is until Skeeter, an unmarried Ole Miss graduate and Jackson socialite misfit, and Abileene, the black maid of her best friend Elizabeth, hatch a plan to write a racially ground-breaking book about the stories of black maids and the white women they serve. The stakes are high, much higher for Abileen and the other black maids involved in the project, and some of their worst fears are realized after the book is released and the proverbial jig is up. However, their dedication to the social change they are affecting never wavers and through the tragedy comes triumph for Skeeter and the maids of Jackson.
I thoroughly enjoyed this book and, although it was slow at points, the message was a resounding gong in my soul that change is good no matter the stakes. The belief in your cause, even when that cause might be costly, is enough to forge ahead. I'd recommend this book without hesitation to any of my fellow readers and would suggest taking your time and absorbing the message as much as the words.
