"The Help"
By Kathryn Stockett
Adult fiction?
In 1962, 22-year-old Eugenia “Skeeter” Phelan returns home to Jackson, Miss., after graduating from Ole Miss only to find that her mother refuses to be sated because she lacks a boyfriend and, more importantly, an engagement ring. On top of that, she no longer fits in with her childhood friends Hilly and Elizabeth, despite her best efforts to participate in their weekly bridge game and edit the Junior League newsletter.
Ordinarily she would solicit comfort and wisdom from her childhood maid, Constantine, but she disappeared while Skeeter was in her final semester at Ole Miss and no one will tell her what transpired.
Despite Skeeter’s desire to satisfy everyone, she must admit that her life is flawed. After receiving some advice from an editor in New York City, she endeavors to write a book about the lives of African-American maids in Jackson.
In researching the book, she secretly collaborates with two maids: Aibileen, a strong-willed maid who is raising her 17th white child and is doing her best to hold it together since her son died in a tragic workplace accident, and Minny, a sassy, to-die-for cook, who cannot hold a job because she is always running off at the mouth to her white employers.
The three seemingly different women have no idea how their courageous partnership will alter their lives and their community.
Kathryn Stockett is an extraordinary storyteller whose debut novel begs to be opened. Through the voices of Skeeter, Aibileen and Minny, readers will find themselves transported to the segregated South during the beginning stages of the civil rights movement and will be turning pages long into the night. Stockett’s theme may be familiar, but thanks to her commendable job of bringing history and characters to life, this book is a standout.
"Sarah’s Key"
By Tatiana de Rosnay
Adult fiction
In 1942, when the French police come to arrest 10-year-old Sarah Starzynski’s family, she locks her 4-year-old brother Michael in a secret cupboard thinking that he will be safe.
Little does she know that the French police are collaborating with the Nazis and that she, her parents and thousands of Jewish families are going to be detained in the Vélodrome d’Hiver for days without food, water or medical attention. Later, they will be transported to concentration camps outside Paris.
Sixty years later, 45-year-old American journalist Julia Jarmond is assigned a magazine article about the commemoration of the anniversary. Though she has lived in France for nearly 25 years, has a French husband and an 11-year-old daughter, she is unfamiliar with the event.
She is appalled at her own ignorance and immediately begins researching the event. In her research, she makes a discovery that causes her to reevaluate her marriage and her life.
In this fictionalized account of an event that is virtually unknown to Americans, author Tatiana De Rosnay does an extraordinary job captivating the reader. Her use of alternating chapters, told from Julia’s and Sarah’s viewpoints, is brilliant and makes this a hard book to stop reading.
Jeana Gockley is the children’s librarian at Joplin Public Library.
Globe Life
Related Photos
Discussion
Book review: Fiction titles with historical bent make fascinating reads
- Globe Life
-
-
Students add vision to collaborative exhibit
In a “secret room” upstairs at Spiva Center for the Arts, an art project began last week that won’t be finished for 18 more days. That’s because it is being created by more than 1,100 artists.
-
Cari Rerat: Pair of graphic novels tell tales of heroism
Witty banter, blood-soaked violence, and old-school sound effects make this one of the most fun graphic novels I’ve read in a long time.
-
Frankie Meyer: Celebrity genealogy hunt makes return to TV
At last, my favorite series is returning for its third season. “Who Do You Think You Are?” is scheduled for 8 p.m. on Fridays.
-
Frankie Meyer: Church minutes can provide details about ancestors
As you compile your family history, you will often learn the name of the church that an ancestor attended. Novice researchers sometimes ignore that type of detail, not realizing that church records can provide details that blast through the brick walls of research.
-
Phyllis Seesengood: Prequel takes Jack Reacher book series back in time
“The Affair,” by Lee Child, is the 16th book in the series of Jack Reacher thrillers and is a prequel to the other books. It takes us back in time to March 1997, where we learn valuable information about Reacher’s background and his reasons for leaving the military.
-
B-easy does it
Chris Watson, a Pittsburg State University graduate and Kansas native, was visiting a local video store when he stumbled across three horror movies he’d either produced, directed, directly written or co-written over the last eight years.
-
Book highlights opposites in animal kingdom
Even in science opposite attract. It’s the opposite ends of a magnet that attract. Don’t try to connect the south poles on two magnets, because it’s not going to work. Opposites attract.
-
Cemetery research can yield details about family
Through cemetery research, family history researchers can learn details such as names of spouses and children, military service, hobbies and religious preference, as well as the date and location of birth, marriages and death.
-
Art class helps kids deal with feelings from tornado
And while this innovative program received national attention -- thanks to the Joplin-based episode of “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition” on Jan. 13 -- Bourne’s mobile arts center, dedicated to the growth and healing of children through art, had been up and running long before the EF-5 tornado suddenly spiraled out of the clouds.
-
Danya Walker: Non-fiction work examines history’s infamous mistresses
Many times, the cover and title of a book promises a much more risque read than is actually delivered. “Mistresses: A History of the Other Woman” by Elizabeth Abbott is one such book.
- More Globe Life Headlines
-
Obama Gives Education Waivers to 10 States
Giffords Aide to Run for Her Seat
LA School in Sex Abuse Scandal Reopens
Winter Slamming North Asia, Parts of Europe
Syrian Forces Renew Bombardment of Homs
States, Banks Reach Foreclosure-abuse Settlement
Raw Video: Italy's Mount Etna Bursts Into Life
Greeks March; Angry Despite Debt Deal
Raw Video: U.S. Pullout Celebration
Raw Video: Annual Empire State Building Run-Up
Man Killed in Courthouse Shootout
Video of Ga. Man Who Killed Girl Released
Air Force Airlines: Leaders Get Polished Service
Ga Girl Fights Off Kidnapper at Walmart
Nevada Highway Patrol, City Settle Beating Case
Homs Bombardment Continues, Global Outcry Grows
Raw Video: Dog Rescued From Icy Colo. Water
Skip the Coffee Cup and Inhale Your Caffeine Fix
