The Help - Kathryn Stockett

I feel like I am one of the few book bloggers left not to have read this one. I have to be shallow and say that one reason I was reluctant to pick this book up was the cover - I think it looks so bland and uninviting! Now that I have read the book the cover - and its significance - resonates with me more.

The Help is broadly a story of the social and political times in Mississippi in the 1960's - but more specifically it is a story of the relationships of and between women and races in that time and place. Three women in particular are the narrators in The Help; Aibileen, an African American woman who has worked as a maid and nanny for white families since her adolescence, Skeeter, a young white society woman who has just returned home from college and Minny (my favourite character in many ways and for many reasons), a middle aged African American woman with a gift for cooking and sassy remarks and comebacks.

Skeeter is in a way the catalyst for the main storyline that takes place in the book. Skeeter wants to be a writer but in her home town of Jackson there aren't a whole lot of opportunities for her to practice her craft so she ends up taking a job writing a domestic and home help advice column for the local paper. As a privileged white woman of the time Skeeter does not have a lot of experience in this area which is why she connects with Aibileen - the maid of one her old school friends. It is Aibileen who gives Skeeter the input for her columns - and a tentative relationship begins between the two women which leads to another writing project - one that is much more important and more dangerous for all of the women involved.

I am blown away by how much this book - both the story and the issues it raised - have impacted on me - it was a powerful reading experience. The story was built beautifully - each character had the time and space devoted to them for them to be able to tell the reader their own story - it felt like a collaborative effort. The book had tension, humour, warmth and connection. The section at the end of the book where the author speaks about her own experiences of growing up in Mississippi, and how she reconciled writing in the voice of an African American woman, was a great way to end the story and added a level of authenticity. I don't know how this author will be able to follow up this effort but I am definitely looking forward to her trying!

So Much For That - Lionel Shriver

So Much For That is an extremely timely and topical novel to be reading at the moment with so much discussion and change occurring within the health systems both within the USA and Australia. As both a consumer and an employee of the health system in Australia I am keen to dissect these debates further so whilst So Much For That is set within the American system I find it offered some interesting and relevant points for our own current, and possible future, health care system.

Shriver has produced a very blunt and "in your face" narrative with this book. One of the main male characters, Shep Knacker, has reached middle age and his dreams of leaving his middle class existence in New York and moving to a Developing African Island to live out his days are about to come true. He has talked and dreamt and planned of this "After Life" and it is now about to finally come true. Except for one thing, Shep's wife Glynis has just announced she has been diagnosed with a very aggressive type of cancer. Shep and Glynis aren't going anywhere and the course of the novel follows as Glynis's treatment increases and the family bank balance decreases. Sounds like a fun ride doesn't it?? It is a gloomy book in many respects but I thought Shriver did well to balance the real human emotion of facing a terminal illness with the concrete practicalities of searching out treatments that might work and subsequently fighting medical insurance companies to have these treatments paid for. What I thought didn't work so well was the inclusion of Shep's best friend, Jackson whose family is struggling with their own medical issues in the form of their 16 year old daughter who has a very rare degenerative disease. The stories did compliment each other in many ways but for the most part I just felt overloaded as a reader trying to take in two such serious story lines in one gulp.

I am a huge fan of Shriver's writing and her outspoken personality (I am hoping to be able to hear her speak in person at the upcoming Sydney Writer's Festival) and she hasn't let me down with this book. The ending gave me a couple of problems but overall So Much For That is tough, thought provoking, extremely well researched and provocative - just what I want from a Shriver book!

American Wife - Curtis Sittenfeld

I am not sure exactly what drew me to American Wife - I had previously tried to read one of Curtis Sittenfeld's earlier books, Prep, but I just could not get into it at all. American Wife was the exact opposite - in fact, I stayed up very late last night just to get it finished - I had to know!!

American Wife is drawn from the life story of the current first lady, Laura Bush, a woman I must admit I knew virtually nothing about before starting this fictionalised account of her life (I have since toured Wikipedia to learn more!). I actually didn't realise that the book was based on Laura Bush when I started to read and I am glad about that because I probably wouldn't have even started the book if I had known that - which would have been a huge shame. My political leanings are very far from the American Republican party (Go Obama!) and I think I might have steered away from the book because of that. But, as the author portrays, the fictionalised first lady in the novel also shares some concerns about her husband's political leanings and decisions.

This book is simply wonderfully written - a real character story which is something I love.

I could absolutely love a book even if it was set in one room and contained one scene for the entire novel as long as the characters are expressive and reflective and true - does this make sense?

That's not to say that American Wife is not also full of story and plot - it is, but I think the characters - particularly that of Alice Lindgren/Blackwell are so expressive and moving that you want to stay on the ride just for them and their experiences.

If you want to read an amazing story read this book!

I now need to go and find something new to read that will keep me just as engaged. Any ideas greatly appreciated...