When is the last time that you listened to an audio book that was so splendid you couldn't wait to share it with everyone you care about? "The Help," by Kathryn Stockett, offers that kind of experience. Stockett's novel, set in the Deep South of Jackson, Mississippi during the racially charged years of the 60's, is currently a darling of book clubs everywhere. Stockett has written her story in three different first-person voices, and this narrative format, when paired with the consummate skill of three of the best reader/actors you'll ever hear, makes the unabridged CD version of her book a perfect candidate for summer listening.
The three main characters in the book are unforgettable. Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan is a recent graduate of Ol' Miss who returns home to her parents' cotton "plantation" and discovers that a passion for journalism and her tendency to speak truth to power can be as socially lethal as her much-lamented six-foot frame. Aibileen is a soft-spoken black woman who has raised 16 white children; she loves her newest charge, Mae Mobley, but dreads the day when "Baby Girl" reaches the age (8 or 9) at which all of Aibileen's other white children have "turned" and broken her heart by following in their parents' bigoted footsteps. Minny is a feisty stout fireplug of a housemaid with heavenly cooking skills and a sassy mouth that usually gets her fired within a month; one of her few successful tenures occurs when a deaf employer can't hear her talk back.
Together, these three women embark on a brave project that threatens their respective futures and ultimately, their lives. Throw in a side story about a love-struck husband named Johnny Foote and his new bride, Miss Celia (a culturally challenged girl from Sugarditch who prunes the rose bushes in what Minnie describes as hoochie-pink pedal pushers); add a bossy queen bee socialite named Miss Hilly Holbrook to the mix (you'll want to scratch her eyes out), and you have the makings of a rousing drama that will prompt you to ration your listening sessions so you don't end the book a moment sooner than you have to.
Do yourself a favor and plunk down on a chaise lounge with this audio book and a tall glass of Southern sweet tea. Prepare to work up an appetite (Minnie's fresh peach pie, three-tiered caramel cake, and buttermilk fried chicken will have your taste buds screaming), laugh out loud, cry a little, and make three of the best friends you'll ever have the privilege of meeting. When you're done, you'll want to buy a copy of the recording and give it to your sister, who will give it to her daughter, who will give it to her best friend, who will give it to her mother. It's that good.
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