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)

Beautiful and poignant

The Help is a story about love's power to heal deep wounds and to transcend hatred. Set against the backdrop of Mississippi in the sixties, the larger themes of political and social change come to life in a beautifully written story about women, both black and white. The narration is wonderful, making this book a "must-read". Don't be put off by its length: it's worth every second.

A Must-Listen!

What did you love best about The Help?

The narrators made me feel as if I were watching the movie all over again. They were wonderful!

Who was your favorite character and why?

Abilene was my favorite character, because she made me feel as if I were right there with her, the way she told her story. I could feel the emotions she was feeling.

What does the narrators bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The emotions, definitely!

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Absolutely!

Any additional comments?

Sometimes you read a book, or listen to an audio book, and your finished with it for good. Once was enough. "The Help" is an audio book I will listen to again and again - it's that good!

An Absolute Favorite

I loved this book !! The story was engaging and the reading of the book made it even more enjoyable. This is one of the few books that I know I will listen to again.

Best Audio Book Ever!

I don't usually write reviews, mainly because I'm lazy. I've been singing the praises of this audio book to everyone though! I think I would recommend the audio book over reading it and over the movie. The narrators in this book really bring the characters to life! I especially loved Octavia Spencer as Minnie, so it was really great that she was in the movie too!

Mixed Feelings

I enjoyed this book, I learned about the 60's as a decade, saw upclose the destruction and mistrust of prejudice. The author did a wonderful job of creating a world through the eyes of the characters. I couldn't decide which character I liked the perspective of best- it was always the one that I was currently listening to. The depth of the characters was impressive too. The mixed feelings come into some of the content of the storyline- I felt that there was a lewd part that could have been left out. The swearing was too strong, I have a particular aversion to using the Lord's name in vain. And the content of the chocolate pie shocked me! I can't say that I am over it either. Overall the strength of the story line, the characters and the message of the book enthralled me and I was captive to it until the very end.

I loved this book!

The readers were great, the story is good and full of tension and humor. It really captures the time - early '60s - and the atmosphere of small town Mississippi. At least it is a believable atmosphere, as I wasn;t there!

In My Lifetime?

Having been a woman in my 30's living in the South for a brief time, I can easily recognize the white women depicted in this book. Yet a part of me kept screaming "This couldn't have taken place in my lifetime!" It did. Stockett, clearly not of that era, has captured with honesty and accuracy the tone of that time. She has also given a personal voice to what many of us have only understood through new reporting or commentary. It is a remarkable feat and I applaud her efforts.
I also have high praise for the narrators - each was superb at interpreting the language and feelings of their character.
I highly recommend this book and hope that it msy ultimately get greater exposure as a film.

Fantastic story -- and not just for the ladies

Every review, with a couple of exceptions, were written by women. The author is a woman and 95% of the characters are women but I want to go on record as stating categorically, this is NOT "chick-lit".

This was a tremendously powerful novel that captures a time and place that I had never been, but felt apart of after listening to the story. I can't praise this book enough for the methodical pacing and the way you are drawn into each character... slowly but surely.

The narrators were flawless and captured the dialect with precision, but never took it over the top. It sounded so beautifully natural.

So... from a guy who typically reads fast-paced mysteries and sci-fi books... Give this a shot... it's time on the best seller list is well deserved.

Greatness!

I don't usually believe all the hype about books. This book is the exception. It is absolutely great! I love the different narrators. That only contributes to the depth of the book. I am very impressed with the detail that the writer uses in this book and how deeply I came to care about these characters. Very moving book. It is a must read!

Equality

Big and small influences on southern race relations are concretely revealed in Stockett???s book. She shows the influence that black nanny???s had with children of white families by telling the story of A-B???s (Abileen, a black nanny) relationship with Mae Mobley (a pre-school child of a middle class white family). A-B makes up stories to tell Mae Mobley, like the story of ???Martian Luther King???, to explain there is no difference between white and black people, except for the color of their skin.

Stockett may dwell a little too much on the inequity of white and black existence in the south of the 1960s but her book is not a vilification of Mississippi but a reflection of how trapped human beings become by the influence of their neighbors and by the economic condition of their lives.