Need A Hand?

Ah, the Oscars are in the air. I have been home all day watching the red carpet. I swear this is the only day of the whole year that I watch the E channel. But I just get wrapped up in all of the glamour! I love movies, and I have seen 7 of the 9 nomines for best picture, and I am even in an Oscar poll contest (which I plan to win). I'm thinking The Artist for best picture, and quite a few other catagories. So far I haven't been astounded by any of the dresses on the red carpet, but there is still some time left.
And so, in the with the Oscar announcement looming, I figured I would review one of the books that was made into a movie this year: The Help by Kathryn Stockett. I adored this book! I thought it was absolutely beautiful. This is one of the few books that I actually really enjoyed the audio book as well. The girls who read for this book were chosen perfectly. There was so much personality in each one of them.
The Help takes place in Jackson, Mississippi beginning in 1962. It is told by 3 amazing women: Skeeter, Aibileen, and Minny. Skeeter is a college graduate who wants to be a writer, Aibileen is a maid who has raised 17 white babies, and Minny is also a maid who has a problem with sass-mouthing. When the 3 women get together to write a book about what it is really like to work as a black maid in the south they must fight against the racisim ingrained in the citizens of Jackson.

Writing this book, at the time it would have been written, was so dangerous. People were killed over far less, as you will hear about in this book. The characters in this book are so fleshed out and real, which I think comes from the author's experience. Kathryn Stockett talks about growing up in the south and her own maid in an essay at the end of the book. I adored the book, but Kathryn Stockett's essay at the end of the book brought so much more realism. I want to read this book again and again. Unfortunately the movie fell short of what I wanted. If you saw the movie and loved it, read the book. The characters and feelings are so much deeper. The danger of what these women are doing just doesn't come across in the movie.

But hey, that's just my opinion. I highly suggest you read this book. I adored every part of it. It made me cry and laugh (and few books can make me do both) and I kept finding myself rooting for the characters. This book felt so real, I knew these people and I wanted them to succeed. Go get this book, read it now, and please, everyone, enjoy Oscar Sunday!!

Rating: 4.5/5