Kathryn Stockett, author of the upcoming novel, The Help
Having finished reading my advanced reader’s copy of native Jacksonian Kathryn Stockett’s new novel The Help last week, I have not been able to get it off my mind. Those of us who grew up in the ’60s in Mississippi will have a slightly different viewpoint from those who were born in later decades. Since I was in actuality slightly less than a decade younger than the protagonist “Skeeter”, I was able to identify with her feelings, her rising independence, and even her dresses from Jackson’s premiere fashion store “Kennington’s”, or New Orleans’ pride, “Maison Blanche” where I often traveled to shop with my mother. The very close friendship I was fortunate to have with my family’s help(ers), I recalled while reading this novel, often with smiles close to tears at times. Poignant scenes, all very accurately detailed and true in regard to racial relations of the times, caused me to remember with great sadness those hard times. This is a novel that had been waiting to be written, and Stockett has handled often delicate matters with kindness and fairness. Jacksonians will understand this novel and recognize its many characters, locations, and customs better than anyone else in the country, and therefore, will reap the greatest rewards for having read it. Heartstrings will be pulled with this one. Stockett’s upcoming reading on February 17 should not be missed. I predict an overflowing crowd and a sellout!
-Nan
Comments are closed.