The Help - Kathryn Stockett

464 pages

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. What perfect timing for this optimistic, uplifting debut novel set during the nascent civil rights movement in Jackson, Miss., where black women were trusted to raise white children but not to polish the household silver. Eugenia Skeeter Phelan is just home from college in 1962, and, anxious to become a writer, is advised to hone her chops by writing about what disturbs you. The budding social activist begins to collect the stories of the black women on whom the country club sets relies and mistrusts enlisting the help of Aibileen, a maid who's raised 17 children, and Aibileen's best friend Minny, who's found herself unemployed more than a few times after mouthing off to her white employers. The book Skeeter puts together based on their stories is scathing and shocking, bringing pride and hope to the black community, while giving Skeeter the courage to break down her personal boundaries and pursue her dreams. Assured and layered, full of heart and history, this one has bestseller written all over it.

I absolutely loved this book.
I always admire people standing up for what is right, despite the consequences.

I admire the courage of these woman to tell their stories, to reveal the truth, even knowing that by doing so they were putting themselves and their families in grave danger.

Some parts of the book were so intense that it was hard to read.
I had to stop and put it down at one point.

I think the overall theme of this book is hope.
Hope that things can get better, and that right will prevail.

Currently Reading: Death of a Prankster- M.C. Beaton
2010 total: 12

Death of an Outsider & The Tale of Puddn'head Wilson

118 pages

This is the first Mark Twain book I've read since high school.

It was interesting.

According to the author, it started out as a farce and ended up being a tragedy. He says it was actually 2 stories in one.

I have to admit, I don't understand the title.
Yes, it is a tragedy, but the tragedy part did not involve Pudd'nhead Wilson. In fact, he ended up being the hero. Neither is Puddn'head one of the main character. *shrugs* Maybe I'm missing something. I don't know.

This book is definitely NOT politically correct. It was hard to read in some places- both because of the content, and because of the dialect. It made me laugh. It made me angry. It is a good story.

It involves two babies being raised by a slave named Roxy.
Roxy is only 1/16th black. Her skin is white. Her son's skin is white.
Roxy cares for her son, and her master's son.
The two boys look like twins.
Roxy comes up with a plan to switch them so her son will never be sold, and hopefully will be able to stay with her.
After the many sacrifices she makes for her son, he turns out to be horrible.
He betrays in the worse way.

There is much more to the story than that, but I don't want to give anything away.

The book includes a duel, fingerprinting (which was apparently a new science at the time), cat burglary, palm reading, murder, and the phrase "he needed killing." lol



Death of an Outsider - M.C. Beaton

148 pages

"Nobody in the Scottish town of Cnothan had much liked William Mainwaring. The abrasive Englishman rubbed everyone the wrong way. And now that he's been murdered, nobody seems to mind. Constable Hamish Macbeth happens to be on temporary duty in Cnothan when the killer strikes, and now, like it or not, he's got to solve the crime and bring the killer to justice. But the closed-mouthed locals seem to be hiding many secrets. And as Hamish slowly pieces together a tale of illicit romance, secret vices, real-estate swindles and witchcraft, he begins to wonder if he will soon be joining Mainwairing ."

I liked this book. M.C. Beaton makes the setting and characters come alive. The town of Cnothan is a very bleak, depressing sort of place. I felt almost as homesick as Hamish did for Lochdubh.

This book was written in the 80s and it is very evident. There are references to Reagan, Gorbachev, Margaret Thatcher, AIDS, and more. Descriptions of clothing includes large shoulder pads in dresses! I think that's a fashion trend we'd all like to forget. lol

Currently Reading: "The Help"
2010 total: 11

11 p.m.

I did it! My 24 hours is up!!

I finished my last book just in time- with 15 minutes to spare.

So how did we do?

I read
Death of an Outsider-M.C. Beaton,
The Tragedy of Puddn'head Wilson- Mark Twain
the book of James (the Message bible)
6 chapters of The Help.

DD read
Nancy Drew Notebooks-Alien in the Classroom
Nancy Drew Notebooks- The Apple Bandit
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes
126 pages (out of 220) of Emily Windsnap & the Monster from the Deep

DS read
The Yellow Feather Mystery (Hardy Boys)
Robinson Crusoe


Not too shabby, if you factor in interruptions by my 4 children, and breaks for exercise, showers, meals, and naps.

Tomorrow I will be visiting some of the other readers' blogs.
I love blog surfing.

This was very fun. I can't wait for the next read-a-thon.

I want to thank all of the cheerleaders and fellow readers for your encouragement.
I couldn't have done it without you! :-)

8 p.m. update

I am up to chapter 15 (61% complete) in Puddin'head Wilson.
It's a good book and I am enjoying it.

I have to admit, I am getting a little tired of reading.

Only 3 more hours until my 24-hour mark is up!
I might read past the 24 hour mark, though.
Like I said, I'm a night owl. It's no big for me to read all night. :-)

6 p.m. update

After my last update, I moved outside for a change of scenery.
I sat on the patio swing and read 8 chapters of Puddin'head Wilson.
Then I came inside, had a bath, and ate a tomato & avocado sandwich.

Now it's time to get back to business. :-)

My daughter is joining me again. She's been reading for about an hour.
She is on page 66 (chapter 3) of Emily Windsnap and the Monster from the Deep.

I am going to be starting on chapter 9 of Puddin'head Wilson in just a moment.

3 p.m. update

I've finally finished a book. Yay!

Next time I do a read-a-thon I will NOT choose a 500 page book!
I don't think I will be finishing The Help today.

I finished Death of an Outsider by M.C. Beaton.

I will be reading The Tragedy of Pudd'nhead Wilson by Mark Twain next.

My boys have abandoned me.
They went fishing with their dad.
I don't blame them, though.
If you were a teenaged boy, which would you choose? lol
They will be joining me again tonight.

DD finished The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes and is now reading the second Emily Windsnap book.
She is taking a break for awhile.

I am feeling much better now- afternoons and evenings are my peak time.
The morning sluggishness has left me.
It's time to get down to some serious reading!

12:30 p.m.

I napped, had dinner, did some laundry, and woke up the kids.

Now it's time to get back to reading!

10 a.m. update

I read one chapter in The Help, and one chapter in Death of an Outsider.

I think I'm going to switch to Death of an Outsider until I finish it.
It's a rather short book and I need to feel like I've accomplished something.

I'm currently on chapter 15 of The Help and chapter 6 of Death of an Outsider.

I am having a hard time this morning.
It's easy for me to stay up and read, but mornings are not my best time of day.
I'm sleepy!

The kids are not awake yet.
I think I may take a short "power-nap," and then wake them up.

Read-a-Thon Intro Meme

Where are you reading from today? Louisiana

3 facts about me … I am 35 years old, I'm an (almost) vegetarian, and I'm a homeschooling mom of 4 children

How many books do you have in your TBR pile for the next 24 hours? 3 or 4

Do you have any goals for the read-a-thon (i.e. number of books, number of pages, number of hours, or number of comments on blogs)?

My goal is to finish "The Help," "Death of an Outsider" by M.C. Beaton, and at least one other book from my TBR pile.

If you’re a veteran read-a-thoner, Any advice for people doing this for the first time?

Nope, sorry. I'm a newbie. :-)

8 a.m.

I'm awake, time to get back to reading!!!

3 a.m. update

I read 4 chapters of "The Help."
They are long chapters.
This is a very good book, but I am getting tired of reading it.
I think I'm going to switch to something else for awhile.
I am currently on chapter 14 (40% complete, according to my Kindle).

DD completed her second book and is now reading "The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes,"
Illustrated Classics edition.
She's currently on page 150- she only has 30 pages left in it.

DS (14) finished his first book (Yellow Feather Mystery) and is currently on chapter 13 of Robinson Crusoe.

I am getting sleepy.
I think I will have to stop for some sleep soon.

1 a.m. update

DD completed one book (Nancy Drew & Alien in the Classroom), and read 56 pages in another book (Nancy Drew & the Apple Bandit).

DS (14) read 79 pages of his book.
He's currently on page 148.

I read the book of James, 1 chapter in "Death of and Outsider" by M.C. Beaton (while in the bath), and 2 chapters in "The Help."

I'm currently on chapter 10 of "The Help."

Setting the Mood

It's time to start reading!!

At least it is for us. ;-)

We are night owls.
It's much easier for us to stay up late reading than to wake up at the crack of dawn to start.

We officially started at 11 p.m.

We will read until we fall asleep (which I expect to be about 3 a.m.), then we'll
resume when we wake tomorrow.


Before I start, I like to set the mood.

My favorite time to read is on a rainy night.
Unfortunately, it isn't raining at the moment, so I will listen a recording
of a rain storm on my iPod while I'm reading.

I do this quite regularly.
I like the cozy feeling it produces, and it helps to drown out any noise that
may distract from my reading.


I also don't like harsh overhead lights while I'm reading, so I use my trusty Energizer headlight.
It's the best!

I am going to be reading in the living room.
For some reason, I can't read comfortably in bed.
So, I am going to curl up on the sofa with my pillows and a comfy quilt
for the remainder of the night.

DD is beginning with "Nancy Drew notebooks: Alien in the Classroom."
She is on page 38 at the moment.

C (14 y.o. son) is currently reading The Yellow Feather Mystery.
He's on page 69.

I am going to begin reading a chapter or two in the book of James (the Message translation),
then move on to "The Help."

I will be updating our progress through the night.

Read-a-Thon

It's almost time for the read-a-thon!
If you'd like to participate, there's still time to sign up.
It starts at 5 a.m. Pacific this Saturday.
Click on the picture for more info.

You don't have to read for the entire 24 hours.
You are allowed to sleep and take breaks.

I must say right now that I will not be starting early in the morning. I have insomnia, so it will be no problem for me to stay up all night reading, but I absolutely cannot wake up early enough for the start time. I guess that means I'll be using my sleep time at the beginning of the read-a-thon instead of at the end. :-)

My children will also be participating. I don't think they will read the entire time, but they will be reading for a large part of the day.

We will be blogging our progress on this blog.

Here are our reading lists:

Mine
The Help- Kathryn Stockett
At the moment I have read about 25% of it.

Death of an Outsider- M.C. Beaton
I am currently on page 48 of 148.

My goal is to finish these two books and then start (and hopefully finish) something from my TBR pile.


My 14 year old son
The Yellow Feather Mystery (Hardy Boys)
He is about half way into it.

Robinson Crusoe
He's already read it twice, but wants to read it again.
It's his favorite.

Warriors #1 - Into the Wild
Warriors #2- Fire and Ice

My 10 year old daughter
Emily Windsnap and the Monster from the Deep- Liz Kessler
Emily Windsnap and the Castle in the Mist
This series is about a girl who finds out she is really a mermaid.
DD's already read the first in the series and has read a little of the second book

The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (Children's Illustrated Classics edition)

Nancy Drew Notebooks- The Apple Bandits, and Alien in the Classroom

My 13 year old son
He does not like to read.
This makes me sad.

However, he will be participating as well.
He bought a large collection of "Goosebumps" books from Ebay.
He will be reading some of these.

It's not my favorite choice, but at least he reads them.



I can't wait for Saturday!!!