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)

Love it

i love it the book tell me a lot about my family i feel like tooo

One of the best

One of the best books I have ever listened to. The performance was outstanding, the story was incredible, and I just loved every minute of this book. I keep telling all my friends to listen to it.

Oh Lawd

Every emotion was brought out by this book. Including laughing in public when no one else can hear. The characters are so real
you can imagine their very presence.

Superb

Sometimes provoking, often funny, always inspiring. You'll grow to love the central characters - such characterful and colorful women. The narrators are brilliant too.

Best book of the year

This was truly a page turner, the best book this year, MS Stockett does an amazing job of bringing these characters to life, a must read for history buffs.

Excellent story and presentation.

Would you listen to The Help again? Why?

Yes

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

the last hour was wonderful

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The last few minutes when the author shared her heart about the book.

incredible performances in this audiobook

This is the first and only audiobook that I could actually listen to more than once. I connected to the characters and the performance of the narrators is the best I have heard.

This book is a must read

If you enjoyed "To Kill a Mockingbird" then this is a follow up. I really believe this should be a required reading by every Senior High School student prior to graduation. I loved it.

Couldn't turn it off

Usually, I listen to my audible stories while driving and turn it off once out of my car. With this audiobook I found myself staying in my car to listen, and laying in bed just to hear the story. The narrators are perfect. I'm going to miss their voices. I highly recommend this book.

Fantastic Listen

This is a fantastic listen and I think it is an important book. The narration is wonderful and the story is gripping. I couldn't stop listening.