#4: The Help by Kathryn Stockett

I feel quite certain that The Help will be 2011's best read as decided upon by ME!  Last year I picked my favorite book from the 52 that I read (it was Firefly Lane by Kristin Hannah) and I am trying to keep an open mind about this year, but The Help has become the ruler by which I am measuring all other books.  The Help is about just that: "The Help" that a group of white women "employ."  I am in awe of the talent of Kathryn Stockett for this is her first novel and a tough one to live up to in future books, but I am sincerely hoping that more are to come from this amazing first-time novelist.  As I read this book, I clearly paid attention to the characters, their loud voices, and the overall plot and sub-plots of the book.  But, the one idea that popped into my head more than once as I was reading was how my generation has not experienced a fight worth fighting for in our lifetime.  We did not survive the great depression, we did not fight in a major war and we have not fought for civil rights or equal rights.  I can vaguely recall the threat of nuclear war being something I feared during high school, but once the wall was down, I knew I was safe and no longer had a fear in the world.  I wonder if this is why my generation is so self-centered?  We have not had a struggle within the boundaries of our own country or even our own city.  It makes me grateful, in a way, but sad in another.  I think we'd be better people if we had a cause, something that made us passionate, something that made us want to fight.  OK--off the soap box I go.  Read The Help.  It will remind you of what's important in life and that sometimes it's OK to risk everything for something you believe in.