Book Review: The Help

by Kathryn Stockett
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I really liked this book. Historical fiction is probably my favorite genre, and American history is probably my favorite topic. I also typically like books that are character development based (as opposed to plot based). So this book was a win/win as far as that goes. I've read a lot of books about slavery, and a few on civil rights, but this is probably the first book I've read that addressed the civil rights movement through the daily life lens of ordinary women. This was an interesting take on it.

Ever since I read A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, I've loved the idea that progress, realistically, happens in small steps, a generation or so at a time. The Help, does a great job of expressing this idea. And I think that's one of the underlying themes: how change comes about in society. I did not think the book was trying to point out that things were bad in the South in the 1950s and 60s, in my mind that's already a given. The author was trying to talk about change, and picked a backdrop she understood as her medium to do it.

Speaking of the author, one of my favorite parts of the book was reading her few pages at the end. I like that her feelings about her upbringing in the South are mixed and complicated, instead of cut and dry. I like that she expressed this complication in her characters. Probably what I love most about the book is that the characters are so real and human.

My favorite character was Aibeleen. I felt taht she was the voice of change in the story. She was rock solid, and steady, and without her quiet, ongoing strength and courage, everything would have dead ended before it even started.

Great book. There is a lot of mild language, but it's the way people talked. I didn't feel like the language detracted from the book at all. I'd recommend this book, and I can't wait to see the movie.