Gigi Devine Murfitt

Good help is like true love — you only get one in a life time. (Quote from The Help)

I just finished reading the book, The Help by Kathryn Stockett via the AudioBook version. I usually like to have the book in my hands but this was a perfect road trip audio book for my recent drive from Seattle, WA to Missoula, MT.
The Help covers the timeframe of the early sixties when racial tensions were challenging in the south as the civil rights movement unfolded.
The story is written in the voice of three different characters. Skeeter, Aibileen and Minny. I learned to love each of these women. 
The main character is a young woman (Skeeter) raised on a cotton plantation with the help of her loving maid, Constantine. Skeeter is a writer so I immediately related to her character.
Abilene is the maid for Skeeter’s best friend Elizabeth. She is sweet and loves the children she cares for. Minny is the feisty maid who has been fired numerous time for mouthing off but is most loved for her cooking.
Both maids are strong women with wisdom and love for the many children they have helped raise.
Skeeter determines to tell the stories of twelve maids and the white women they work for. Some of the stories are of kindness and generosity but most are of prejudice and mistreatment of these caring women.
One character in the book I didn’t particularly care for was Hilly. She was a snooty woman who treated the help with contempt.
One line from the book makes me think of Hilly. “Disgust was saved up special for her.” Boy, I sure didn’t like that woman. The author did a fabulous job in helping me get a bad taste in my mouth every time her name was mentioned.
I hope every reader learns a little bit about loving kindness as they read this book.  And I pray you are nothing like Hilly.
Because I listened to it on audio, the actors voices brought the story to life with the dialect of the south. I sure hope the actors in the movie sound like these voices.
I’m anxious to see if the movie will do the book justice. It is scheduled to release on August 10, 2010. I already entered a drawing for two tickets to the early release showing on August 9, 2010.
I recommend The Help for a great summer read. And I’m sure the movie will be entertaining too.
I hope you read it before the movie releases. Here’s a link for you to check it out at Amazon.

Now that I’ve finished another novel, I’m ready to read a new book. What are you reading this summer? Leave a few suggestions in the comments.
God Bless Your Heart
Gigi