Author

Published by: Amy Einhorn/Putnam, 2009

My daughter, Candice, and I each read this book in 2010 but we never quite had enough time to sit and talk about it at length. But, now that we’ve been in Portland for nearly a month, we took the opportunity to chat. I want to share with you our thoughts.

First, for those of you who haven’t had a chance to read The Help, let me give you a short summary.

Synopsis:

It’s 1962 in Jackson, Mississippi and Eugenia – Skeeter – Phelan has just graduated from college. She’s back home living with her parents. Skeeter’s mother would prefer she get married, but Skeeter dreams of becoming a writer.

The only job Skeeter can find is writing a column for the local newspaper. The column is all about household hints which, unfortunately, Skeeter knows nothing about.

Skeeter asks for help from Abileen, a good friend’s maid. As Skeeter spends time with Abileen, she begins to pay close attention to the huge inequities between the races. On the one hand, Abillen, who is black, is good enough to nurse and raise 17 white children, but not good enough to use the household bathroom.

Soon Skeeter is gathering information and writing about the experiences of the black maids. Of course, she needs to do it secretly. She doesn’t want her family or close friends to know what she is doing. In turn the black maids know that, if this information were to be tied to them, it could mean severe punishment and loss of income, and possibly imprisonment or death.

Our reaction to the book was mixed. To me, the story felt personal. I was about the same age as Skeeter in this time period. I taught in an all black school in Kansas City, not that much different from Jackson. Many of my teacher friends and a few parents told me stories similar to those of the maids. The Help put me right back in that time period.

Candice, on the other hand, felt it was hard to have a sense of the story today. For instance, she couldn’t relate to the dangerous aspect of what Skeeter and the maids were doing.

We both liked most of the characters in the story, which is a good thing since the story is very character driven. We both liked the character of Abileen. Candice felt that Abileen was truly the co-author of the book. I felt Abileen was the very heart of the story.

Abileen had a real passion to get all the maids to share their experiences. In turn it gave great hope to her black community. Abileen also was very wise and thoughtful in all relationships and particularly good at dealing with the needs of the children in her care.

Minny was another character that was fun to analyze. Candice was worried for Minny because of the dual threat from her abusive husband as well as her employers. Minny had a very brassy personality but she was still so vulnerable. She was always concerned she would do something that would cause her to lose her job again, and yet her brassy manner and mouth would often get her into trouble.

Minny was an excellent cook and I liked the part of the story where she secretly teaches a new bride to cook so her new husband will think she did the cooking. The poor little bride really needed a friend. While Minny could befriend her, she could never be her friend. Minny always played the maid and resisted being a peer.

We also looked at the acts of racism on the part of the white women in the story. Except for Skitter, they all held subservient positions to their husbands. Wouldn’t they work to stop making their maids subservient to them? These white women didn’t seem to see the connection.

We think Sketter was able to see the inequities the maids experienced because she didn’t want the subservient wife role for herself. Skeeter was already resisting the push to conform to predetermined roles and saw that others were

Overall, we really enjoyed reading The Help. It never dragged and was very compelling. Kathryn Stockett is a very good storyteller. It’s a story that needed to be told and should be read. Candice and I both know people who would have been sympathetic to the behavior of the while women. And, it’s still a mindset that is comfortable for far too many people.

In my opinion, acts of racism have improved since the sixties but it still exists, often in hidden or subtle ways. It’s still important to have ongoing dialogue on the subject. Reading this book can help spur discussion. I’m also very happy to hear they are making a movie based on this book and that, hopefully will create more meaningful conversations. Let’s hope Hollywood does well with this good story.

Look for The Help at your local bookstore. I’ve also seen copies at the library. It’s also available at Amazon.(I am an Amazon Associate.)

by Harry Dolan

Amy Einhorn Books/Putnam, 2009

My Rating: A

Opening lines: The shovel has to meet certain requirements. A pointed blade. A short handle, to make it maneuverable in a confined space.

No, this is not a gardening book. The shovel is not going to be used for yardwork. It’s a mystery book about a man named David Loogan.

He calls himself David Loogan but it’s not the name he was born with. He has recently moved to Ann Arbor, Michigan. At first, David just wanders around his new hometown, seeing the sights.

Just because it appeals to him, he decides to write a mystery story for a local mystery magazine. After making numerous changes to the manuscript, all of which he submits, the publisher, Tom Kristoll offers him a job as an editor.

David appears to be a quiet, private person but he can’t resist becoming friends with the amiable publisher. Nor can he resist being drawn into an affair with Tom’s wife, Laura. And, you can’t help noticing that a lot of people who are connected to the magazine are being murdered.

From the very first page the reader knows David is buying a shovel in order to bury a body. Can this quiet, private person commit a crime of passion? Did I mention that the murders committed are strangely similar to stories in the mystery magazine?

If you are a mystery buff, this is one you have to read. I had a hard time describing this book to you. On the one hand I loved this story and I want to tell you all about it. But, at the same time, I don’t want to spoil it for you. I really want everyone to read it. I tried hard not to tell you anymore than what you can read inside the book cover.

Bad Things Happen is more than a simple mystery. It felt more like contemporary literature with lots of mystery thrown in. The writing is superb. I liked all the smart dialogue that made me feel as if I were part of the conversation. The plot is clever with many twists and turns. The author has a subtle sense of humor, too. I’d read that there were disguised reference to other crime novels but I only caught a few. This is a great novel for people who love crime fiction but I’d highly recommend it to everyone who likes good literature.

The is Harry Dolan’s first novel although he’s been working as an editor for many years. His website is here. Hopefully he’ll give us another good novel soon.

I borrowed this book from the library. It’s also available at Amazon. (I am an Amazon Associate.)

I read this book as part of the Amy Einhorn Reading Challenge. For more information, visit the challenge page at Beth Fish Reads.

by Kelly O’Connor McNees

Amy Einhorn Books

Published by G.P. Putnam’s Sons

April, 2010

My Rating: A+

When I was a girl, Little Women was a favorite among my friends and I. We read it numerous times. We talked endlessly about the Marsh family and their activities. We play-acted portions of the book. Yes, we were obsessed.

We were convinced that Jo was, in truth, Louisa May Alcott. We speculated for hours about what really happened between Jo and Laurie.

It’s too bad we didn’t have The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott back then. It’s as if the author heard our speculations. Actually, I believe she was speculating too. Kelly McNees took some of her speculations and, what I’m sure was lots of research, and turned them into the perfect sequel to Little Women.

The Lost Summer of Louisa May Alcott is the fictional story of what could have happened to Louisa Alcott in 1855. During that summer Louisa, her parents, and her three sisters moved from Boston to the little town of Walpole. Louisa’s plan was to help her family settle in and then return to Boston to write her stories and pursue her goal of independence. Contrary to the expectations for women of the time, Louisa longed to be a spinster and to be free to live life on her own terms.

Louisa’s goal was tested in Walpole when she met Joseph, a young man who was different from other men she knew. They liked the same literature, they were equals in intellectual debates and, best of all, Joseph truly understood Louisa. Louisa was torn between her growing love for Joseph and her goals and ambitions.

This story gives us an inside look at the marriage of Louisa’s parents and why Louisa developed her determination to remain single. It paints a very negative picture of Louisa’s father, Bronson Alcott and in turn the role of a wife as seen in Louisa’s mother. Bronson Alcott believed that he was above work, thus forcing his family to live a life of “genteel poverty.” It put an enormous strain on his wife and daughters.

In addition to an everyday look at the Alcott family life, this novel features some of the activities enjoyed by young people during this time period. We see a swimming party with typical swimwear, a trip to the circus, and the staging of an amateur play. There were happy times as well as heartbreaking tragedies in Walpole that summer.

More than anything else, I enjoyed the characters in The Lost Summer. Louisa was complicated but believable. I loved her older sister Anna and of course, Joseph. I thoroughly disliked Louisa’s father which should tell you how well developed the character was.

I understand this is the first novel for Ms. McNees. I’m very surprised, as the story feels like that of an experienced novelist. A nice bonus was the quotes at the beginning of each chapter. Each one comes from the writings of Miss Alcott.

So, for all my friends, childhood and otherwise, who share my love of Little Women and other of Louisa May Alcott’s stories, I recommend this book with the hightest praise. It’s so very well done.

Thanks to TLC Book Tours for the opportunity to read this book. For other stops on the tour please visit here.

Challenges: This story speaks volumes about the treatment of women and is an excellent read for the Women Unbound Challenge. Published under the imprint of Amy Einhorn, this book also qualifies for the Amy Einhorn Challenge.