This book is set in a small town in Mississippi in 1963 and centers around a book a young white woman wants to write about the experiences of the black maids in her town. It was an interesting book on many levels. I was just a child in the early 60's and we had a maid, if not daily, at least weekly. It was just a part of life. However, we did not have a separate bathroom for the maid, and I don't think my mother neglected my sister and me like the women did in the book. My main criticism of The Help is that the whites seem mainly self -centered and oblivious, while the blacks are all wonderful people. All white people did not mistreat their maids and all black people were not great workers.
That being said, the book really points out the ingrained prejudices and ways of thinking on both sides which were very true. Although things among the races have improved greatly, some of those attitudes remain today.
The drama and politics of the Women's Club sounded alot like Calhoun! And the references to the clothes and life without air conditioning in the early 60's brought back memories. Finally I could relate to the tall protagonist who did not quite fit in and was always letting her mother down!
Fiction
I loved this book too! It was a great debut novel and a true Southern read! Great characters and dialogue! By the way, I love your blog idea. I will put you in my Blogline feed so I can keep up with your posts. Sheri
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed the book. I have shared it with several of my family members. It makes me wonder about prejudices that still exist today!
ReplyDeleteI just finished reading this today. In fact, I signed on to tell you about it and I was surprised to see you had already read it. I thoroughly enjoyed this book.I looked at her website and I see that a movie is in the works. I'm not sure how I feel about that. I'll have to see it though. I eagerly anticipate this author's next creation.
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