Phil

The Help is a glorious first novel, set in Mississippi in the 1960s. An appealing protagonist who yearns to be a writer interviews a dozen black maids who work for the families of her friends. Juxtaposed with King's fateful march, history in the making and the changing South and a changing America are beautifully portrayed. Like the Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Society, which I also highly recommend, the plucky writer and the people she befriends transcends what at first seems like a tough subject for an upbeat charming book.