Only good things about this book. Both heartbreaking and heartwarming, humorous and hard-hitting all at once.
Summary:
The tale of three women in Jackson, Mississippi with stories to tell. Aibileen and Minnie are middle-aged black maids while Skeeter is a white girl looking to be a journalist. Together they begin to catalogue the truth about what it's like to live in the segregated South. At the time when civil rights is only just starting to take hold, their words could prove dangerous... and more important than ever.
Verdict: 10/10
This book was more heart-wrenching than any of the romances, more hilarious than any of the comedies, and more thrilling than any of the murder-mystery books I’ve read in the past few months! I sped through this at near record pace. I hated to put it down, each time just dying to know what happened next.
The funny thing is that I’ve watched the movie (also 10/10) so I knew decently what to expect. I think this helped in reading it so quickly - I didn’t have to pause to remember who was who or reorient myself as much when the perspectives switched because I was already familiar with the characters and the events. There were some things that were changed, but I found many more similarities than differences. Quotes came straight out of the book so I could hear the actors reading them in my head. And any differences seemed like bonus content that I was learning now.
I don’t know how one person can right so many different points of view in such a real way. Kathryn Stockett's afterword on the difficulty of capturing races and her own experience with her maid in Jackson was beautiful. It seems she really based the relationship with Constantine on that. There’s just so many sides of the spectrum to capture in these relationships. And they're all so true to life. I also thought the writing in each character's voice/accent was done respectfully and truthfully. I could hear each of them talking right to me.
It was so emotional and personal. I don’t know how I held back my tears for any of it. I don’t think I’ve ever encountered such a hard scene to read as the one between Celia and Minnie. While I have not experienced any of these tragic events myself, I can’t imagine anyone who has being able to stomach reading let alone living it.
This book adds so much perspective to what human beings can live through and somehow stay positive in spite of. The novel did not shy away or gloss over anything, and yet there were a good many times where I laughed out loud. I'm amazed at this balance of tragedy and comedy, hate and love, shame and hope. My hat goes off to Stockett. Truly a spectacular book. And a great movie adaptation to boot.
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