During the month of October, I’m posting brief reviews of some of my favorite books from the past couple of years: those that really touched my heart, gave me a new perspective, taught me something, or were just plain fun. Hopefully you will be inspired to add something to your to-read list. 🙂
I don’t read a lot of contemporary fiction, but when the movie version of The Help came out, I thought it looked intriguing, and decided to read the book first. It was indeed quite a moving story, set in the 1960’s in Mississippi during the tumultuous days of the civil rights movement. Here is what I wrote back in February of 2012 on Goodreads:
Likes: I loved the characters (really enjoyed the different voices in the audiobook version), loved the mostly first-person storytelling. It really gave me a feel for that time and place, and the complicated relationships between “the help” and their employers (and the employers’ children). I admit to being taken aback by the sheer scope of the racism and segregation, I mean, I knew it was bad but – separate hospitals and stores???
Dislikes: the profanity and one scene in particular which was over-the-top descriptive. Some things are better left unsaid.
In my opinion, the book was much better than the movie, as is usually the case. The movie changed and left out a lot.
