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)

Entertaining!

Listened to it all on a long road trip. Very entertaining and definitely worth a listen. Enjoyed it very much.

Simply Amazing

I have 30 audio books in my audible.com library and I can easily say i enjoyed this one the most! (I have never taken the time to review before) The depth of the characters is amazing! I highly recommend this book!

Excellent!!

The performances were outstanding and the listener is drawn into each character’s story. Well done

I saw the movie, however the book was much more .

This book gave us a birdseye view of the south in the 60's, it was informative.

Beautifully written and spoken

Love audible books, so soothing and helpful when you have a busy schedule, Octavia Spencer was phenomenal

Powerful & heartfelt!

Stockett weaves a powerful, multiple perspective narrative that speaks to our time today. Beautifully written with excellent readers!

One of my favorite audible books!!

This audible is very vivid! The narrator makes it easy to image each character with their specific personalities. I love listening to the book more than watching the movie. I would definitely recommend to anyone who is new to audible and wants to get started listening, but doesn't know what to choose. This is your first book! Enjoy!

5 stars 100%

I absolutely love this book and enjoyed listening to it every minute. I recommend it everyone read it at least once, although it will be one I revisit often.

My thoughts

I enjoyed every bit of this story. It made me laugh out loud, cry, and wonder how people can be so cruel. It was a sad story, but I loved it.

The Help

The best!