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Kelsey Ford: From the Stacks: J. M. Ledgard's Submergence (0 comment)
Our blog feature, "From the Stacks," features our booksellers’ favorite older books: those fortuitous used finds, underrated masterpieces, and lesser known treasures. Basically: the books that we’re the most passionate about handselling. This week, we’re featuring Kelsey F.’s pick, Submergence by J. M. Ledgard...
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  • Kelsey Ford: Powell's Picks Spotlight: Grady Hendrix's 'How to Sell a Haunted House' (0 comment)

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Help

by Kathryn Stockett
Help

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ISBN13: 9780399155345
ISBN10: 0399155341
Condition: Standard
DustJacket: Standard

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Awards

The Rooster 2010 Morning News Tournament of Books Nominee

Puddlys 2011 2011and 2012 Puddly Awards for Fiction


Synopses & Reviews

Publisher Comments

Be prepared to meet three unforgettable women.

Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.

Minny, Aibileen’s best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobody’s business, but she can’t mind her tongue, so she’s lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.

Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women— mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends—view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don’t.

Review

Review

**STARRED REVIEW**  Sepetys follows her debut, Between Shades of Gray, with another taut and charged historical novel, though the setting—the French Quarter of New Orleans in 1950—is a world apart from that of her previous book. Living and working in a bookshop, 17-year-old Josie Moraine dreams of attending college—anything to get away from her mother, a prostitute with Hollywood dreams and a knack for getting involved with the worst men. When Josie becomes involved in a high-profile murder investigation, she becomes even more entrenched in her circumstances. The sensual yet rigidly class-based setting is a real standout, and Sepetys has also built a stellar cast, which includes Willie, a strident but generous madam; Charlie Marlowe, the bookshops owner; and a pair of potential love interests for Josie. Readers will find Josie irresistible from the get-go (“The only reason Id lift my skirt is to pull out my pistol and plug you,” she tells a guy early on) and will devour the sultry mix of mystery, historical detail, and romance.--Publishers Weekly, starred review

Review

**STARRED REVIEW**  Step right onto the rough streets of the New Orleans French Quarter, circa 1950…and meet 17-year-old Josie Moraine, a feisty young woman whose mother, a prostitute in a Conti Street brothel, offers her nothing but scorn and abuse. From the tender age of 12, Josie has made her own way in the world, working in a local bookstore in exchange for a safe place to sleep and cleaning the brothel to earn money toward her planned escape from the Big Easy. Equal parts book smart and street smart, Josies dream is to attend Smith College, and she will go to extremes, even blackmail, in her desperation to be accepted. But just when her plans start to gain some traction, her mother strikes again, putting Josie in the middle of a murder investigation and saddling her with a mob debt. There are some meaningful messages here: that love can come from the unlikeliest of sources—the rough-and-tumble brothel madam is much more supportive of Josie than her mother ever was—and that we are all in control of our own destinies if only we choose to be. With a rich and realistic setting, a compelling and entertaining first-person narration, a colorful cast of memorable characters and an intriguing storyline, this is a surefire winner. Immensely satisfying.--Kirkus Reviews, starred review

Review

Praise for OUT OF THE EASY

“Street-smart, literary and compassionate… Atmospheric and assured…nicely paced novel.”--Wall Street Journal

“A satisfying novel, bringing to life the midcentury French Quarter…Sepetys writes with rawness and palpable emotional unease.”--New York Times Book Review (Editors Choice)

“A haunting peek at the life of a teenage girl in 1950s New Orleans.”--Entertainment Weekly

“Like her debut title, Sepetyss latest is full of transporting writing, drawing you into a past that is fully reconstructed by her superb imagination.”--Boston Globe

"Unforgettable."--Toronto Star

* "With a rich and realistic setting, a compelling and entertaining first-person narration, a colorful cast of memorable characters and an intriguing storyline, this is a surefire winner. Immensely satisfying.” --Kirkus, starred review

* “[A]nother taut and charged historical novel… Sepetys has also built a stellar cast. Readers will find Josie irresistible from the get-go and will devour the sultry mix of mystery, historical detail, and romance.”--Publishers Weekly, starred review

* "A Dickensian array of characters; the mystique, ambience, and language of the French Quarter; a suspenseful, action-packed story. With dramatic and contextual flair, Sepetys introduces teens to another memorable heroine."--School Library Journal, starred review

“A page-turner that noir romance fans will gobble up. The legions of fans that Sepetys earned with her best-selling debut novel will all be lining up for this. --Booklist

“This suspenseful novel…proves Sepetys's extraordinary versatility as a storyteller.”--Shelf Awareness

"Rough-edged and glamorous by turns, this is a wild ride worth taking."--Bookpage

 

Review

"In her tale of an aspiring white writer in 1960s Mississippi who decides to secretly compile the untold stories of black domestic workers, Kathryn Stockett attempts to work out her own complicated feelings about race relations in her native South. She throws herself into the attempt with gusto and gravitas, a risk that pays off to a point: The Help is buoyant in its most sober moments, occasionally insightful. Skeeter Phelan is a misfit, a 24-year-old college grad growing uneasy with the social hierarchies of home; the two black women who risk their lives and livelihoods to help collect the interviews she seeks, Aibileen and Minny, are sympathetically if somewhat predictably drawn. Yet the buoyancy often undermines the book's more serious intentions; ultimately, The Help can't decide if it's modern Faulkner or pop lit with some racial lessons thrown in for fiber." Erin Aubry Kaplan, Ms. magazine (read the entire Ms. review)

Synopsis

Three ordinary women are about to take one extraordinary step.

Twenty-two-year-old Skeeter has just returned home after graduating from Ole Miss. She may have a degree, but it is 1962, Mississippi, and her mother will not be happy till Skeeter has a ring on her finger. Skeeter would normally find solace with her beloved maid Constantine, the woman who raised her, but Constantine has disappeared and no one will tell Skeeter where she has gone.

Aibileen is a black maid, a wise, regal woman raising her seventeenth white child. Something has shifted inside her after the loss of her own son, who died while his bosses looked the other way. She is devoted to the little girl she looks after, though she knows both their hearts may be broken.

Minny, Aibileen's best friend, is short, fat, and perhaps the sassiest woman in Mississippi. She can cook like nobodyas business, but she can't mind her tongue, so she's lost yet another job. Minny finally finds a position working for someone too new to town to know her reputation. But her new boss has secrets of her own.

Seemingly as different from one another as can be, these women will nonetheless come together for a clandestine project that will put them all at risk. And why? Because they are suffocating within the lines that define their town and their times. And sometimes lines are made to be crossed.

In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women — mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends — view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, The Help is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don't.

Synopsis

The #1 New York Times bestselling novel and basis for the Academy Award-winning film.

Aibileen is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who's always taken orders quietly, but lately she's unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She's full of ambition, but without a husband, she's considered a failure. Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town...

Synopsis

The #1 New York Times bestselling novel and basis for the Academy Award-winning film--a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don't--nominated as one of America's best-loved novels by PBS's The Great American Read.

Aibileen is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who's always taken orders quietly, but lately she's unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She's full of ambition, but without a husband, she's considered a failure.

Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town...

Synopsis

In Jackson, Mississippi, in 1962, there are lines that are not crossed. With the civil rights movement exploding all around them, three women start a movement of their own, forever changing a town and the way women — black and white, mothers and daughters — view one another.

Synopsis

Visit www.penguin.com for the latest news, tour information and more.

Listen to an excerpt from the audiobook.The wildly popular New York Times bestseller and reading group favorite

Aibileen is a black maid in 1962 Jackson, Mississippi, who's always taken orders quietly, but lately she's unable to hold her bitterness back. Her friend Minny has never held her tongue but now must somehow keep secrets about her employer that leave her speechless. White socialite Skeeter just graduated college. She's full of ambition, but without a husband, she's considered a failure. Together, these seemingly different women join together to write a tell-all book about work as a black maid in the South, that could forever alter their destinies and the life of a small town...

Synopsis

“A haunting peek at the life of a teenage girl in 1950s New Orleans.”--Entertainment Weekly

Its 1950, and as the French Quarter of New Orleans simmers with secrets, seventeen-year-old Josie Moraine is silently stirring a pot of her own. Known among locals as the daughter of a brothel prostitute, Josie wants more out of life than the Big Easy has to offer. She devises a plan get out, but a mysterious death in the Quarter leaves Josie tangled in an investigation that will challenge her allegiance to her mother, her conscience, and Willie Woodley, the brusque madam on Conti Street.

Josie is caught between the dream of an elite college and a clandestine underworld. New Orleans lures her in her quest for truth, dangling temptation at every turn, and escalating to the ultimate test.

With characters as captivating as those in her internationally bestselling novel Between Shades of Gray, Ruta Sepetys skillfully creates a rich story of secrets, lies, and the haunting reminder that decisions can shape our destiny.

Praise for OUT OF THE EASY

“Sepetys writes with rawness and palpable emotional unease…the stakes are momentous.”--The New York Times Book Review

“Street-smart, literary and compassionate… Atmospheric and assured…nicely paced novel.”--Wall Street Journal

* "A surefire winner. Immensely satisfying."--Kirkus, starred review

New York Times bestseller

An Amazon Best Book of the Year 2013

A Kirkus Best Book of 2014

A Goodreads Best Young Adult Fiction Book of 2013

Yalsa Best Fiction for Young Adults nomination

Carnegie Medal Finalist

 

 

Synopsis

With more than 3 million copies sold, the #1 New York Times bestseller is now available in a special gift edition.

A modern classic, The Help has been a cultural touchstone for the millions of readers who have cheered on Skeeter, laughed with Minny, and hissed at Hilly. The noble and strong Aibileen has become a heroine for countless fans whose letters have poured in from all over the world. Now the bestselling and beloved book is available in a deluxe gift edition.

The Help has been on bestseller lists for longer than any other hardcover fiction title since The Da Vinci Code. It was USA Today's 2009 Book of the Year and has been published in thirty-seven countries around the world.

The movie The Help, produced by DreamWorks and 1492 Pictures, is scheduled for a major motion-picture release in August 2011.

This beautiful edition, destined to be passed down from generation to generation, is filled with special features, including:

-satin ribbon marker

-printed endpapers

-two-color interior printing

This deluxe gift edition is the perfect gift for someone you love-or as a special treat for yourself.


About the Author

Kathryn Stockett was born and raised in Jackson, Mississippi. After graduating from the University of Alabama with a degree in English and Creative Writing, she moved to New York City where she worked in magazine publishing and marketing for nine years. She currently lives in Atlanta with her husband and daughter. Kathryn Stockett's debut novel, The Help, is a New York Times bestseller.

4.9 195

What Our Readers Are Saying

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Average customer rating 4.9 (195 comments)

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salgadoadrianramiro , October 25, 2014
"The Help" was a wonderful work of literature. The author detailed each and every character and made it as though each character was real. The novel's plot was beautifully written and composed. I would recommend this book to any student who is learning about history during the period of the 50's/60's.

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Sylvia Jacobus , January 27, 2013
Thought provoking and funny book. Hard to believe people behaved they way they did in the South. Not recognizing that these ladies were human beings.

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Penni4 , May 05, 2012 (view all comments by Penni4)
If you read The Secret Life of Bees or Fried Green Tomatoes at the Wistlestop cafe and liked them you will like this book. You can read the synopsis to know what the book is about. What I will tell you is that the book was well written. The Help has good character development and the story will keep you entertained throughout the entire book.

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Jennmarie68 , March 31, 2012 (view all comments by Jennmarie68)
I have been wanting to get my hands on this book for quite a while. Then when the movie came out I really had to get a copy. I'd heard such great things about the book and couldn't wait to read it. I did like the book. The story really makes you think. It amazed me how some of the people acted. I would get so mad at them, it doesn't matter to me that this was how things were, it still made me so angry sometimes. Even Skeeter who was trying to do such good was so idiotic sometimes. I just wanted to smack her. I liked Skeeter but she was so naive, even when she started to open her eyes to what was going on she still seemed to have no idea. I loved Aibileen, she seemed like the kind of person you could talk to for five minuets and feel like you've been friends forever. And although Minny needed her butt kicked a few times I really liked her to. She was a no nonsense take it or leave it kind of person, and unfortunately for her many people chose to leave it. This book made me cry, made me angry, made me happy, made me sad, made me laugh, and made me laugh so hard I cried. It was easy for me to get lost in the story, I could vividly see what was happening. What I think I liked the most was that not everyone got a happy ending. I love a feel-good story, but at some point it becomes so unbelievable that it almost feels like an insult. Real-life is hard and not everyone gets the happy ending all the time. That really was refreshing for me. It seems as if most of the "popular" books that I read all end with everyone getting exactly what they wanted. Now that I've finally read the book I can't wait to see the movie! Hope they did at least a half-way decent job with it.

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amhengst , February 12, 2012 (view all comments by amhengst)
A story based in Mississippi back in the early 1960's in the civil rights movement times. Humorous and funny, never a dual moment through out the whole book. This book is very thought provoking and interesting.

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LMD , January 28, 2012 (view all comments by LMD)
Excellent book about the Civil Rights era in the south.

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Larhonda Guinn , January 28, 2012
"The Help" is one of those books you can't put down. The type that capture your attendtion on the very first page. The book teaches you about friendship, loyalty, forgiveness, racism, and American history in the 1960's

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hopesdreams , January 28, 2012 (view all comments by hopesdreams)
Nice read for a winter afternoon

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jrsinger , January 28, 2012
This book felt so heartwarming and real. The author transported me to the pre-civil rights era south, where mothers didn't know how to take care of their children but the black maids did. I cried, I laughed, and was said when it ended.

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bessolo , January 27, 2012
I loved the characters in this book and did not want it to end!

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grannysugs , January 26, 2012
This book is listed under fiction but for anyone that has grown up in the south, you'll recognize it as non fiction. So true to life. The characters come alive.

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HKS , January 26, 2012
I just love the way The Help seems to wisk you away right back into the history that comes alive in its pages. Katherine Stockett really did a beautiful job when she wrote the story of how Minnie, Skeeter, and Aibleen, come together no matter their differences and create a work of art that changes the town of Jackson, Mississippi, forever.

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leahiniowa , January 26, 2012 (view all comments by leahiniowa)
I am an Eisenhower baby born and bred in East Texas. I had heard so many wonderful things about this book that I held off reading it for several months - it's so disappointing when book doesn't live up to expectations. When I finally did, I discovered that this book hit me personally on many very deep levels. This book not only "rang true," it continued to "echo" for months in my thoughts. I can vouch for the authenticity of this novel's plot, characters, background, atmosphere and dialect. Many people are unaware that there are many different variations of the Southern drawl, 'black and white' - 'upper class and trash.' Unfortunately, we seem to be losing this variety due to the constant media barrage. I was very gratified to see that Stockett managed to present her characters' spoken words accurately - no mean feat considering the variety of characters she portrayed. Although Skeeter and her friends are from an earlier generation than I. One of the most famous Texans of her generation was Janis Joplin, who once said that the most beautiful sight she'd ever seen was Texas in the rear view mirror of her car. But change comes slowly in the South. This was shockingly brought home to me when one of the scenes of Skeeter sending off resumes and manuscripts hit me with the buried memory of myself doing exactly the same thing fifteen years later. I now live in Northeast Iowa,and almost everyone I know has either read this book and/or seen the movie. Clearly you don't have to come from that place or time for this amazing book to have a major impact. I just wanted to share with the Powell's community that this book is a rock-solid portrayal of this time and place.

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Poise , January 25, 2012
From start to finish, excellent. Hillarious, thought provoking

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suprnrs , January 25, 2012
One of the most wonderful books that I've read (and I read alot!) this year. From a historical perspective, it's so accurate and just as a story, it's wonderful!

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Lindsay Waite , January 19, 2012 (view all comments by Lindsay Waite)
This book placed me right back in the 1960s. No, I wasn't living in the south. I lived in Maryland, outside Baltimore, a state which had soldiers on both sides of the Civil War and even today still has a bit of a "north/south split." The house had "help" but only once a week or so. I was a child and recall wondering about this wonderful woman, to whom my mother only spoke about cleaning chores. As I aged and began taking buses to get into town, I wondered about the morning buses coming from the city with black women, while buses going into the city were filled with white folks filling most of the downtown jobs (except for cleaning, of course). I digress. In "The Help," the reader experiences the gross insensitivity and cluelessness of those who hired "help." One also shares in the lives of the these hard workers, intelligent, humorous and the backbones of some of the families. I haven't seen the film yet because I have concerns that it might not rise to the level of this necessary story.

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mom of 4 version , January 02, 2012
Loved this book for so many reasons: 1) Realistic in terms of dialogue and content 2) In the era of "political correctness" you can't hide the real life of living in the south in the 60's. Even though this is only one town, it showcased how the culture of the ethnic discrimmination became such an important movement. 3) The many different relationships and irony of women in roles and views of family's in the south for this time period. 4) Had my teenage daughter read this so she has some insight of the history of what took place in the south. (a version of some of the history) :)

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hezfun , September 30, 2011
The book naturally has gained national attention since the movie came out, but I hadn't realized how good it would actually be. The obvious topics of racism and prejudice were handled delicately, without "preachy" overtones. I was surprised by how much it made me think; think about the relationships in my life, my expectations of people, and how completely 'programmed' I am by society's rules. It's subtle, but it's having a profound effect on me. Thank you, Kathryn Stockett, for being so brave and sharing this with the world.

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Brittany Holman , September 01, 2011 (view all comments by Brittany Holman)
I absolutely loved this book. It really makes you think about that time in American history, and even about how things are today. How people's minds worked then, and still today. Ignorance.... I'm so happy about how the book ended, yet sad at the same time. I cried. I admire Skeeter, and it makes me ashamed about how little I've done so far in my life. Talk about a hero figure. Not to mention Constantine, Minny, and Aibileen. I can't wait to see the movie. I hear good things. I'd recommend this book to everyone!

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The Loopy Librarian , September 01, 2011 (view all comments by The Loopy Librarian)
Pitch perfect! It struck just the right balance between storytelling and message. Stockett doesn’t sugarcoat the racism of the time period in Jackson, Mississippi, but in The Help she finds a way to address it without creating a depressing book. In fact, she stirs in just the right amount of humor, drama, friendship, and hope. Change is often slow in coming, but it can come when people take a stand and face their fears. Skeeter, Minny, and Aibileen make an unlikely trio of heroines, but they take a big chance and help to bring some positive changes to their community and to their own lives. This book touched on all of my emotions at various times. Sometimes I laughed out loud; other times I wanted to cry. There were things that happened that made me furious and other things that gave me hope. Basically, it was awesome storytelling with a compelling message, and it doesn’t get much better than that.

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JD2009 , August 09, 2011 (view all comments by JD2009)
Could not put this one down. I picked it up in the hopes of reading it in under two weeks so that I could catch the movie during opening weekend with a friend. Little did I know that I'd read it in just a matter of a few days. If I hadn't had to actually work several of those days, I would have preferred to curl up on the sofa with this and not even come up for air. It is difficult to believe this is a first time author -- Ms. Stockett pulls her reader straight into civil-rights era Jackson, MS and the outside world disappears as the story unfolds between these unlikely allies. I laughed out loud (a rarity for me!), cried several tears of both joy and sadness, and have walked away with a sense or urgency to re-examine my own Southern upbringing.

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Diane of Maryland , June 08, 2011
Beautiful book, excellently written. The Help is never a book I would pick up and read on my own. This book was given to me by a friend, noting it as her favorite book, a book that she too would have never picked up on her own. It is a beautiful story of friendship, respect, motivation, and likewise the horrors that surrounded slavery. I fell in love with the characters, finding myself laughing and crying with them. I especially loved Minnie, a character who just grew in the book and was hard not to love. This story is one of empowerment of women, and of humankind. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who is looking for a rich, powerful story of the bond between women. It will leave you smiling until the last page.

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writermala , March 01, 2011 (view all comments by writermala)
The Help is a book within a book. The whole novel deals with the fascination creation of a novel - the story of women of two races, two colors. And the point of the book is for us to realize that not much separates people. The Help is one of those books that had to be written and every thinking adult ought to read. Its poignant scenes traversing points of view from Aibileen to Minny to Skeeter keeps us the readers engrossed. As we keep telling ourselves "no this can't be true," the nagging doubt persists, "yes nobody could dream all this up."

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Zee , January 31, 2011
That Kathryn Stockett took the time to write this book makes one know she has seriously considered the feelings of the family maid, a black woman working for Stockett's white family during the Civil Rights movement. It's a heartfelt book, giving one a fascinating (and sad) view of that era in Mississippi.

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mfgardengirl , January 30, 2011
This is a slice of history as told from 'the other person's' point of view. Mississippi, 1962 and the help are the black women who wait on and clean house for young newlywed white women. Great story but what makes this book so outstanding is the writing. The author gets the dialect exactly correct! This book is one of my all time favorites.

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Jennifer Mattson , January 29, 2011
Not that this is an important criteria for the fiction I read, but I feel as if the characters of The Help live and breathe, and that if I did some historical research, I could find out what happened to them. When I turned the last page of the book, I was already missing them. The book itself actually breathes. I loved it!

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joshmichi , January 28, 2011
Excellent historical sytle fiction, and from a first timer. I normally hate short stories, but the style and flow of this book almost like short stories was perfectly executed.

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Susan Thomas , January 27, 2011 (view all comments by Susan Thomas)
It took me along time to pick up the book and read it, but when I did I read it straight through. It's a great book with a rewarding finish.

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Kathryn Poulin , January 26, 2011
Incredible book! Very original and wonderfully touching book. Loved all the characters and found them to be true to the Deep South in the 1960s. Everyone should read this book!!!

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Ruth Roberts , January 25, 2011
This is the story of African American maids working in white households in Jackson, Mississippi during the early 1960s. The story of the affection and intimacy between the "help" and the employers alone is worth the read. The book will definitely be better than the movie!

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JoanneMK , January 20, 2011 (view all comments by JoanneMK)
The Help received so many rave reviews that I was actually nervous about finally reading it -- after all, how could a book possibly meet such high expectations? And so it was one of the last books I read in 2010. What a remarkable book!!! The voices of the various narrators evoked their experiences in a way that a more traditional, third-person narrative could not have captured. The characters had depth and plenty of flaws -- other than Aibileen, I'm not sure I truly liked any of them. I found myself frequently having the same kinds of reactions as Skeeter -- how could I not have understood these things? I finished the book wishing that I knew more about whether and how the community of Jackson managed to heal its wounds.

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Em Lee , January 19, 2011
This novel is one of my all-time favorites! Stockett's writing is superb, and her story is riveting. But it's her characters that make this book unforgettable. Most of them are from Southern gentility and depict that class as selfish and snooty, except for Skeeter. Skeeter returns to her hometown after college and is forced-- ironically because of her relationship with her family's maid Aibileen-- to take a second look at the women she grew up with. In turn, readers examine their own attitudes about friendship and class. One of those books that's hard to put down.

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Teachwell , January 15, 2011
Can't stop thinking about the characters of this story! Delightful and profound.

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Bookhimdanno , January 15, 2011 (view all comments by Bookhimdanno)
This book was amazing, it took a bit to get started but wow. The way the black maids were treated by the women they worked for, cleaned for, raise their children for, was eye-opening. The idea that anyone treated people so badly, yet allowed them to love and raise their children was mind boggling. I loved the relationship between Aibee and Mae Mobley and the love she had for the children she raised. It broke my heart to think of all those babies and the love she gave them and they gave her, but the kids became just like their parents in the end. Having separate bathrooms for the help because they carried different diseases. What the heck? We are all just people, not that much different from each other. We love, we hurt, we work hard and want to be accepted by those around us. I loved this book, but attitudes and behaviors take the longest to change. These women were trusted with the children, the cooking and the house and yet treated, for the most part, as dirt under a finger nail. This book will make you think about the way you treat others. Would you want the way you treat those around you published in a book? Maybe you need to change the way you treat others so you would be happy to see others read about you and your relationships. Skeeter had guts, she did what she thought was right even though she lost things and people she loved. Doing what is right does not always make you popular. Right is right, every time. What a amazing set of characters and relationships. I loved the stories about love between the maids and the families they worked for. Not everything was bad, but things had to change.

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sashaorr1 , January 15, 2011
This book is extremely well written. I dearly loved it; you will laugh and cry all while getting a great history lesson!

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OpsGirl , January 13, 2011
I loved this book. The subject was treated with a honest and humane touch and brought both tears and laughter. I eagerly await more from this author.

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Hedy , January 13, 2011 (view all comments by Hedy)
Ms. Stockett's depiction of her characters feels real. The empathy that grows between her white and Afro-American protagonists crosses to her readers.

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shortyreader , January 11, 2011
One of the best books in recent years about race relations while blended with family and feminism issues.

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woodworj , January 10, 2011 (view all comments by woodworj)
This was my favorite book that I read last year. I haven't run across anyone who hasn't liked it and I recommend it all the time to friends. You know when a movie is in the works that it is probably a good read. Set in Mississippi in the early 60's it tells the story of black maids working in white households and how poorly they are treated. Fortunately, they support each other and are brave enough to tell their stories to a young female writer who is trying to help, despite their fears of losing their jobs. Read it!

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Pam E , January 06, 2011 (view all comments by Pam E)
This book tells a powerful story. Two groups of women are living their ascribed lives in a mid-size town in the American South. They are often close enough to touch each other but they live in very different worlds. One young woman responds to the movement for racial equality by entreating the black women, who are domestic servants in the homes of her acquaintances, to truthfully share what it is to live a divided life. Each woman speaks of being a maid to a white family and how, in most cases, they have been a powerless target for degradation, intimidated, and worse. The women are fearful, proud, strong and loyal to one another. Their stories reveal how racism damages both sides, in producing people whose potential is stunted or destroyed and in rewarding cruelty.

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Kentucky Fan , January 06, 2011 (view all comments by Kentucky Fan)
So powerful, so painful, so true.

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befoutz , January 05, 2011
This was a fascinating book, enhanced perhaps because I was listening to it read instead of reading it myself. Part of the fascination was because it takes place in a culture which I am not familiar with. I am from the Northwest and this book is set in the south. I really connected with the characters, and am hoping that Kathryn Stockett will write the continuing story.

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Fia , January 05, 2011
The Help is an enthralling, compelling read; I resented every moment I had to set aside. Kathryn Stockett has managed to intertwine powerful personal and social complexities with finesse and good grace.

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Tracy Bock , January 04, 2011 (view all comments by Tracy Bock)
A richly provocative novel with very believable characters that will stay with any reader for a very long time.

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Lwaxana , January 04, 2011 (view all comments by Lwaxana)
This was the most enjoyable novel I've read in years. It made me laugh, made me cry, and made me think. I hope Kathryn Stockett writes a sequel, because I want to know what happens next! I feel as if I know these people, and their lives just can't stop when I close the covers of the book.

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klm39 , January 04, 2011
This was a very insightful, emotional and endearing book. I absolutely loved it and read it cover to cover in just a day. Highly recommend.

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novaceleste9 , January 04, 2011
I couldn't put the book down. I really like the

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bookster , January 03, 2011
An excellent choice for a Puddly Award...this novel pulls you in from the start. Can't believe it's a first novel! You can actually feel what the characters are feeling as if you were part of Jackson, Mississippi.

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bjj , January 03, 2011 (view all comments by bjj)
Stockett has such an amazing and beautiful voice. You reach an intimacy with her characters as if you were in the room having a conversation with them.

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Word Seeker , January 03, 2011
The Help is delightful, funny, serious, mysterious and true to life all at once. It's success among readers is due to a lively style, careful yet flowing plotting, and absolute authenticity of emotion that sweeps along to a astounding finale. Problems are presented from many viewpoints, solutions are developed slowly and one longs to remain in the world Stockett has created.

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Lori Leyba-Kramer , January 03, 2011
This book captured me from the opening paragraph. It is so beautifully written that you actually feel as though you are living among the characters in the book. Growing up during the Civil Rights era, I was aware of the blatant discrimination so alive and well in the southern states, but was not fully aware of what African-American women experienced as hired help during that period of time. This is a book that will stay with me always.

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Karen Strand , January 03, 2011
Amazing book, I read a lot but will never forget this one.

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lskillin , January 03, 2011
Riviting book. Eye opening to how life was back in the 60's. Highly recommend.

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cf , January 03, 2011
I loved the thoughts and conversation between the colorful characters...the language was almost musical for me. With the suspense, sadness & comedy, I couldn't put this down. Not just chick lit either as hubby also enjoyed it. Caught him reading it even with football on the tv.

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Ann Sandhorst , January 03, 2011 (view all comments by Ann Sandhorst)
Very well written, great story.

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Kristi Lulich , January 02, 2011 (view all comments by Kristi Lulich)
This is a beautifully written story about the imaginary lines we create and the ones that are created for us that keep people apart based upon race, sex, or socieconomic status. This story centers around the relationship of four woman that cross these barriors and begin a change in a small town in Mississipi. Their unlikely friendships give them strengh to remove those lines and make the path for a better place for their children despite great hardship and fear of being outcasts.

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bkwrm , January 02, 2011 (view all comments by bkwrm)
The best way to "read" this book is to listen to it! The sound recording is Fabulous! Each actress reading is authentic to the way the character would have sounded. I highly recommend enjoying this book on CD!

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GrannyH , January 02, 2011 (view all comments by GrannyH)
I loved this book, it really opened up a new world for me. Kathryn Stockett offers the chance to walk a mile in the shoes of the black hired help, working in the Southern white household. How can you ask a woman to nurse your baby and then tell her she is too unclean to use your bathroom?

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gardengirl42 , January 02, 2011
Poignant and lovely and enraging... Most of all, the courage of the human heart is portrayed in a wonderful way.

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dlw , January 02, 2011 (view all comments by dlw)
An eye opener for the reality of racial prejudice. Everyone should read this book and examine their own beliefs and their ability to make changes to help others.

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Carol Davies , January 02, 2011
Great characters.

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rebeccawave , January 02, 2011
This passed my test with flying colors: That the characters become embedded in my emotional and mental memory. No pat solutions or easy stereotypes, but fully-formed people interacting in both expected and unexpected ways in a very real environment. This is why I read fiction--to hear a true story. (no irony intended)

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Jerry A. Carlson , January 02, 2011
Stockett creates wonderful characters that you really care for and what she does with toilets is delightful!

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larsonszoo , January 02, 2011
Heartbreakingly familiar -- and heartwarming -- in its realism.

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bevieann38 , January 02, 2011
I listened to this on CDs, it was beautifully presented, and later read it in my hardback copy. Both were very enjoyable, and well worth rereading. A really good story well crafted, and obviously well researched, the historical setting is one of which we should all be reminded. Great character development! Our stimulating Book Club discussion encouraged further thought.

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littlebookworm , January 02, 2011
Incredible story that I couldn't put down. An absolute must read.

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Susan Holler , January 02, 2011 (view all comments by Susan Holler)
This book gave the women of colored a voice and the reader could feel their fear of being known, the injustices done in society during this era. It was a book that I didn't want put down. Skeeter was looking to solve her own life as she listened to the help share theirs and she found herself through them. This book really portrayed the strength and courage of all of these women as they survived in this southern era.

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moorecab , January 02, 2011
Couldn't put this down once I started it. Wonderful insight into the 60's!

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jacksniece , January 02, 2011
This book is a much needed reminder of the difficulties faced by people of color then and now.

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Lisa Combs , January 02, 2011 (view all comments by Lisa Combs)
Cheers for Stockett for portraying the Mississippi black women as PEOPLE. Yes, there is social morality as a character in this 'got to read the next page' of a book. There is also entertainment. So many have read The Help, talked about it, shared it and loved it. A book that shares with so many speaks for itself as the book of the year. I do not know another title read by so many so openly discussed. I vote for The Help as the Book Of The Year...

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Wilhelmina , January 02, 2011
The Help is the book of 2010 that will stick with me for years to come. I grew up in the deep south during the 60s, the events, stories, language and descriptions used are spot on. Our family had a housekeeper to help us a couple days a week, I can still recall the conflicting feelings of friendship vs embassasment at having her do for us all the things she did. As mush as I enjoyed reading this book, I relished listening to the audio version, it added so much! I live far away now, but hearing the voices I grew up hearing in Georgia was wonderful, and the story both sad, embarassing and funny in turns. I recommend it to everyone!

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Ruth Minton , January 02, 2011
This book reminded of my Mississippi relatives. The author has an insite into the minds of the "white" and "colored" of the old South.

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Joan Jeffers , January 02, 2011
A wonderful book that is both heartbreaking and uplifting. Unforgetable women who remind us why we should stand up for our beliefs. You will cheer them on and marvel at their quiet courage.

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Mitch Dugger , January 02, 2011
Funny, sad and causes reflection

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Ellyn , January 02, 2011
I was at times appalled but totally engaged by this book. Having been in high school during the 60's, I was aware of some of the conditions in the south but this book really opened my eyes.

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ldobriko , January 02, 2011
Loved the storyline and the character development.Hopefully, one can call it a story of times gone by.

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Bookworm2 , January 01, 2011
For anyone that wants a different perspective of the Civil Rights movement (in the sixties), you should definitely read this book. The story tells of a white woman who takes on the task of writing a book which tells of a maid's day to day life. Getting their help becomes a real challenge and how she deals with the situation I felt was courageous.

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BookishMom , January 01, 2011
I could not put this book down. The writing was so compelling, I always wanted to know what would happen next. The characters were very well drawn, with each having its own specific voice. Chapters were told from alternating points of view, which was an interesting way to hear the story. The book was a fasicinating look at a period in time quite different from our own (thank goodness). There were some characters who were most disagreeable, but I was satisfied with the way the story was resolved for most of the characters. As soon as I put the book down, I wished there were a sequel or prequel or any other story about these characters, as I felt like I was putting down old friends. I hope Ms. Stockett writes another book soon - I will rush to buy it!

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andshecooks , January 01, 2011
I loved the book. It reminded me of what I observed as a child. I did not grow up in the south, but rather, New England. While life there was not as blatantly prejudiced against African Americans as in the south, it was still present. My own mother had her prejudiced opinions about African Americans I am embarrassed to admit. When I think about this book, the attitude of some of the employers, reminded me of my own mother. The novel was a very brave story, given it's characters and era. I so highly recommend it. If it ever becomes adapted for the movies, I certainly hope the actual storyline is followed!

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Linda Davis , January 01, 2011
Good book

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audioreader , January 01, 2011 (view all comments by audioreader)
Especially good as an audio book....an important book to read and discuss

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SusanT139 , January 01, 2011
Seemingly simple characters reveal their complexity and integrity as the story unfolds. Both humorous and suspenseful, Kathryn Stockett had me pulling for the main three characters in their attempt to buck the social caste system of that era. I truly enjoyed this book.

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Kite , January 01, 2011
The voices in this book were very real, and made me root for the help. As I read, I thought "How can they be that rude to their maids?" I learned much about this time in history that I didn't know.

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EML , January 01, 2011
grrrreat!

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catecheever , January 01, 2011
This book is honest, visceral, and a vivid reminder of just how close we are to 'that' time in U.S. History. I couldn't put it down, and yet felt like I was inside the skin of each character. It brought back my childhood in Oakland, CA where discrimination and segregation was rampant in the 50's and 60's). Thanks to my dear, yet MCP biggoted father, I saw and heard the hatred that instilled in him as a child when he sneered at the "Mou-mous in their moo-moos" as I rode with him on Saturdays to his job in Emeryville. The people I saw looked like fun, colorfully clad, happy people. They laughed, danced, hung out on the street or in their yards -- big families. The kindest, most generous encounters I ever had in Oakland came from people of color I met riding the AC Transit buses up and down E. 14th. It hasn't been that long.

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NYEnglishTeacher , January 01, 2011
The characters and setting stay with you long after you turn the final page. You'll find yourself both laughing out loud and crying by turns through this moving story. Stockett shines a light on the lives of women in the South during this time period. History is brought vividly to life through the alternating perspectives and unique voices Stockett has created. As only the best novels can do, we see the best and worst of humanity here; great strength and dignity, and disappointing cruelty and ignorance. This is a book to share with all of the women in your life!

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LibraryPRB , January 01, 2011 (view all comments by LibraryPRB)
This is one of the most thought-provoking books I've read in a long time. Many of us recognize the injustice of the pre-civil rights South, but we are seldom afforded this glimpse of day to day life with all of its indignities.

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krenc , January 01, 2011
This powerful book gives a very real look at attitudes of the Old South, of the strong bonds among women, and of the racial and generational divide of the Jim Crow era. I loved the characters, the description, the dialect, and didn't want the book to end.

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Laramie-Bookworm , January 01, 2011 (view all comments by Laramie-Bookworm)
My book group and I read this book. Especially those of us who had lived in the South found it important. All for us found the story shocking and important. I have not heard of anyone who didn't feel like this book moved them up.

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Dell , January 01, 2011 (view all comments by Dell)
I bought this book by accident and it was the best mistake I ever made. There has never been a better book written about our social history of the South's recent past. Dell Isham, North Carolina

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Jo Jo , January 01, 2011
This is the first time in a while that I have been so engrossed as to stay up all night reading, only to feel saddened when having to close the book after reading the final sentence. A beautiful novel with unforgettable characters.

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alised , January 01, 2011
I've read so many excellent books this year that choosing one is almost like saying one of your children is your favorite. In spite of this conundrum "The Help" wins hands down. The characters in this book come alive and "live" with you for a long time. Their voices, language, idioms are pitch perfect. This book captures the South during the Civil War era and the racial divide in a true and powerful manner. The plot is so fascinating that it is hard to put the book down. "The Help" has all the ingredients necessary to make it a classic.

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cody22 , January 01, 2011
I went to school in the 1960's in California and although we were very aware of all the changes and in partictular the S.F. Bay Area, we did not know that much at all about the life of the African Americans in the South except for the news reports of the big issues.I had never thought about the perspective that this book reveals and the bringing together of the black and white ladies of the times to join together to expose some very inhumane treatment of the times. The compromises that were made for survival by the "Help" is an enthralling story. I could not put this book down. I will admit I wondered how the author would pull this story off, and I was very impressed with her work. Bravo!!!

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gilbyrobb , January 01, 2011
Inspiring, well written, hopeful.

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rerhoades , January 01, 2011 (view all comments by rerhoades)
I really fell for this book and the characters, hook, line and sinker. I never wanted to put it down, and was so disappointed when I had to turn