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)

Got me hooked on Audio books!

Would you listen to The Help again? Why?

I would certainly listen again it was very well presented and the story got my hooked. I have been chasing the same feeling since finishing the book and I am yet to find something that comes close.

What did you like best about this story?

Everything. Or mostly everything anyway.

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

This was like being in the theatre; the readers just drew me in. The inflections and the southern drawl that I cannot immitate in my head certainly brought the story to life.

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

Yes

Excellent book, excellently narrated

I laughed out loud and nearly wept in public as I listened to this book. It is one of the best books I've read/heard in a long time. The narrator found a distinctive voice for each character and the writer pulls you deep into the compelling story.

Delightful!

When I saw the commercial for the movie, I immediatly knew it must be a great book. It is!

As a 50 year-old southern woman, it brought back so many memories. We never had "help" but the characters in this book are very real.

The performances are great. The story is delightful. It's a great way to spend a weekend.

Let's Cast This Movie!

Ok, OK, we all know this book reads like a classic movie. Let's cast this movie!

Abileen - Alfre Woodard, Whoopi

Minny - Octavia Spencer (the narrator for Minny in the book), Oprah, Jennifer Hudson, Monique, Latifah

Skeeter - Jennifer Garner

Hillie - Ashley Judd like (I know Ashley's too old for this role, but someone with her "fire" could do this!

The best audio I've ever listened to!

I LOVED listening to this book - I laid awake late at night listening because I couldn't stop. Not only is this a wonderful novel, the narration is fabulous. There are three narrators for three different characters, and each is perfect. I fell in love with the voices and characters, and can still hear them now! My husband listened after me and loved it just as much.

Fun and well read

This book is fun, and beautifully read. As someone who lived in the setting she described, Jackson Ms, at the time of the book, early 1960's, in one of the neighborhoods she describes, and lived much of "that life", I feel qualified to comment that the white women in her story would have been considered tacky and lower class by the nicer people in town. It is a good yarn, but not realistic and should not be taken as documentary. Given that, the story is great fun to hear read.

Thoroughly entertaining..

This is my favorite audible book ever!! THIS is why I rarely ever give 5 stars - because every once in a while a book comes along that actually EARNS it! The characters are full of life so much so that I feel like they're my friends - that's how I know a book has "taken me away"... The narrators were nothing less than incredible. BUY THIS BOOK. You will absolutely not regret it.

The Help

It is a wonderful read, I was sorry when it was over as I wanted more of these personalities. We know people like some of these women . What a story. The risks taken by these women were no small thing. The truth of this story in our country is not our shining moment. Still, this book does not hit us over the head moralizing, it tells us a great story about brave women and there are always others that are not so brave or kind. North, South, East, or West, there are these personalities everywhere, and it is the brave ones that keep us all moving forward.

Great story + Great cast = Five Stars all the way

What an absolute delight. This book proves that a great reading and cast can make all the difference in the world. Perfect casting! My favorite was Octavia Spencer who plays her character in the movie as well, all sass and attitude.

The story is wonderful but rather hard to see the reality of life for women of color, especially in the south during that time. It's shameful and eye opening. Kathryn Stockett gives this era in history a unique voice, she is a marvel here. In the end though, it is an uplifting story that makes you go yeah!

I only wish there were more like this gem. Can't recommend it enough!

Awesome story

Any additional comments?

I got so wrapped up in this book I would find myself driving around the block to listen to more. The story was engaging and the narrators did a great job.