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"  Today&amp;#039;s book review is from WomansDay.com staff writer/editor Amanda Greene. She read The Help by Kathryn Stockett:   This is exactly the sort of novel that I would imagine book clubs salivate over. The story\u2013\u2013which is about Skeeter Phelan, a privileged white woman who chronicles the stories of the town&amp;#039;s maids during the civil rights movement\u2013\u2013is a complete page turner, is chock-full of characters that you want to root for and gives an insider&amp;#039;s glimpse (Stockett was raised in a situation similar to the protagonist&amp;#039;s) into a past era.   But there is something a little hokey about it.  The story is narrated by Skeeter and two maids, Aibileen and her best friend Minny. Aibileen and Minny&amp;#039;s voices are written in a thick, dated, Southern drawl, while Skeeter&amp;#039;s voice had no regional quirks whatsoever. Odd. And the premise, that a white teenager sets out to &amp;quot;save&amp;quot; the African-American maids by writing a book about them, is sort of embarrassing. Plus, I&amp;#039;m always a bit leery of characters who are written to be so rigidly evil and conniving that you have no choice but to wish them ill\u2013it just seems too easy. And The Help certainly has a few of these types.  That said, the book is definitely an entertaining and good read. I laughed and I cried. But be prepared to roll your eyes a few times too. \u2013\u2013Amanda Greene  We&amp;#039;d love to hear about what you&amp;#039;re reading, too. Send your reviews to LitFix@womansday.com and we&amp;#039;ll post them right here on the blog.  "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/life/entertainment/reviews/a43400/the-help-by-kathryn-stockett-1989/>