"Hand selling a book" is something that librarians in public libraries do all the time.
We find a few titles that we consider our "go to" titles – a frisky romance, a twisty turny thriller, a cozy mystery without too much gore, and then when we are asked for book recommendations, we have a few at the ready.
At the same time, we often "hand sell" titles that we read and are so impressed by that we want the whole world to read it – if for no other reason than so we have someone else to discuss the title with afterwards!
The Help by Kathryn Stockett has become my recent hand-selling companion, my “go-to” book for any reader, for any occasion.
I knew that prior to its release, The Help was getting a lot of positive press, a lot of impressive authors blurbed on the back cover, and a lot of ad space devoted to it. The publisher was even saying it has more "buzz" than any other first novel in a long time (a first novel is, as I’m sure you guessed, an author's very first published work).
And so, I dove in.
Oh my.
What a wonderful, wonderful read.
It is 1962 in Jackson, Mississippi – a time of gentility, manners - and maids. Stockett tells this novel in three voices - Aibileen, a wise, regal maid, Minny, her overly outspoken fellow maid, and Skeeter, a white woman who believes there has to be more to life than bridge clubs and cotillions. Though these women are so different from each other, they come together for a secret project that, though risky, could reap huge rewards.
This is a wonderful piece of fiction writing, seeming to really capture the spirit and mood of race relations in 1960s Mississippi, as well as the limitations still in place for women during that time. The murder of Medgar Evers, the integration of universities, and the murder of JFK are all woven into this story, as seen through the character's eyes – both white and black. What I found most remarkable was how pitch-perfect each character's voice was – the differences between not only race, but class and education. Hearing each character's voice so clearly in my head simply blew me away. Until you read a few pages of this novel, I cannot really describe how perfectly Stockett has captured their “voices.”
That power does not happen very often, but when it does, you know you have found a writer with a true talent – think Harper Lee or Truman Capote.
I don't know how to adequately give a synopsis of this novel, except to say that I stayed up late reading it, enjoyed every word, and plan to hand to my friends and patrons, one by one.
These characters resonate. This story will stay with you. Put it on your "to read" list now.
One can find Kathryn Stockett on the web at:
KathrynStockett.com
