Friday, August 12, 2011

I'm goin' to Jackson...

Yes, I admit, I’ve been MIA again. I’m just going to stop making excuses for myself. Sometimes I’m inspired. Sometimes I’m not. Also, sometimes I’m just busy.

Although, I do have a reason for my hiatus. I have been in “book world” for the last week. Book world is one of my favorite places to be. It is where I go when I am reading a really good book. Wherever that book takes place becomes my temporary world. This has been the case since I first started reading Harry Potter when I was nine. Reading is my favorite escape. Nothing captures my mind so completely as a good book. Whether I am spending my day at Hogwarts or in New York City or the in arena of the Hunger Games or, in this case Jackson, Mississippi, in the early 1960s.

You probably guessed by that last hint that I have been reading The Help. I’m jumping on the bandwagon a little late, I know. I bought the book Monday and my goal was to have it finished in time to see the movie this weekend. Mission accomplished. (I will be seeing it on $5 Sundays if anyone is interested…boy, if that’s not the best deal in town). So, needless to say, all I did for the last four days was read, hence my lack of writing. I am definitely one of those people who can’t put a book down once I pick it up. This leads to the general rule that I only read during the summer, and during the summer, I read a lot.

So, on to my thoughts on The Help. In case you couldn’t tell by the fact that I spent the last four days doing nothing but reading, I loved it. I love the way Kathryn Stockett captures Southern women in the 1960s. She spared no detail of the historical events taking place at the time. I actually felt like I was learning so much while reading it, from when Interstate 55 was built, to the invention of the remote control. As a Southern sorority girl, I loved the occasional mention of sorority life (especially at all those Southern schools). I also really connected with Skeeter’s struggle to live up to the many expectations placed on Southern women, and felt a moment of empowerment when she followed her heart and changed her life at the end. The three characters from whose perspective it is told are flawlessly portrayed, and each one is completely different. The strength in Aibileen and Minny is completely awe-inspiring and definitely made me rethink the moments in my life when I am feeling discouraged. It was a truly inspiring book that had me laughing and crying within minutes of each other. I definitely recommend it to any and everyone. I even feel a little depressed now that it’s over and my trips to Jackson are no longer just a page turn away…

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