The Help

By: Kathryn Stockett

Narrated by: Jenna Lamia, Bahni Turpin, Octavia Spencer, Cassandra Campbell

Length: 18 hrs and 6 mins

Publisher's summary

Three ordinary women are about to take one extraordinary step.

Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid, Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her 17th white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.

Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody's business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.

Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women—mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends—view one another.

This edition now includes the afterword "Too Little, Too Late—Kathryn Stockett in Her Own Words", as read by the author.

Bonus Audio: Hear an exclusive interview with Kathryn Stockett.

©2009 Kathryn Stockett, Cover Art: (c) 2011 DreamWorks II Distribution Co., LLC (P)2009 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

“The two principal maid characters...leap off the page in all their warm, three dimensional glory...[A] winning novel.” (The New York Times)

“This could be one of the most important pieces of fiction since To Kill a Mockingbird…If you read only one book...let this be it.” (NPR.org)

“A beautiful portrait of a fragmenting world.” (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution)

Great story, presented in a enjoyable format

Where does The Help rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

one of my top reads.

What other book might you compare The Help to and why?

Unique in itself. Comparison in style difficult. To compare in enjoyability i would say the Rabbit Proof Fence.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

The narrators represented their roles in a credible manner. i was able to visualize the character

If you could take any character from The Help out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Skeeter, she is the catalyst of the book

Doubtless you should read that book!!

Where does The Help rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

Very good!!! It is a fun book, good drama..and besides that make us look inside ourself, bcz sometimes we have some attitudes and don't perceive..

The Help

The book is beautifully read and brings the characters to life with each perfect unique voice The story is itself is amazing.

Oh my word!

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this book to everyone I know! This is going into my list of favorite books.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Help?

The terrible awful

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

All the narrators did so great

Who was the most memorable character of The Help and why?

I have a hard time picking a favorite charter.

Any additional comments?

I saw bits and pieces of the movie and thought, what the hay, I will read the book. The book was so great! I just loved it. the movie is spectacular but the book is worlds better. read this book!

Highly recommend it

I loved this book. It got me hooked right off the bat. It's a wonderful well told story. And the narration just adds a lot of value. They do such a good good job. I couldn't wait to get back to listening to the story every morning on my way to work. Very very well done.

Definitely get the audio (not the paper) version

This is my #1 rated audio version of a book--the ensemble cast of voices makes it far superior to reading the print version of the book. It significantly adds to the enjoyment of the book to hear the cast of voices; I feel like I'm listening to a broadway play of the book. I've heard from friends that the dialect in the print version of the book was hard to follow--you have none of those concerns with the audio version. There were a few times of confusion in which it sounded like one character did another character's voice--that felt very odd as you listened--but that is my only complaint.

Riveting. Couldn't 'put it down'

Insightful. GREAT characters. Didn't want it to end. A glimpse into southern life. Important truths without being horrifying.

Amazing, beautiful, I didn't want it to end

This was a great book and I really have all good things to say about it. All I could say Is I have no words except that it's beautifully written and addictive. I recommend it for all ages.

Simply wonderful

May I repeat - simply wonderful. The story, the narration, everything.

Help

Ok it looks like a boring title..... NO WAY!!!! This was one of the best books I've downloaded... I find myself thinking about the book and wondering about the women's lives from the book. What a wonderful story about the struggles of women from the past, white or black.