1.4

I'm rating this one star. I don't even care anymore.

This honestly could have been a really powerful book but a lot of things prevent it from being that.

I read a lot of reviews for this book about halfway through reading it. I was trying to see if I was reading it wrong or maybe I had missed something. I saw people describing it as 'breathtaking' and a 'necessary' book, and I all was getting from it was a very black and white view of racism. There was a flash of gray every now and then, but ultimately, it wasn't discussed.

I've noticed that I lot of people dismiss criticisms about this book under the mantra that 'they didn't grow up in Mississippi and don't know how it is.' Well, guess what? I did grow up in Mississippi. No. Things are not two-dimensional down there. I saw people saying it didn't matter if the story wrapped up a bit too nicely because that's just how it is in the south. I'm here to tell you: no. That's absolutely not how it is in the south. Some people may be privileged enough to see it like that and are privileged enough to believe the 'oh everything is fine and dandy down here' that everyone is told, but I can guarantee you there are still complex issues down there that a lot of people won't address because it's a bit too much work for them.

Onto the actual story now that I've discussed my grievances with the, dare I say, stans of this book.

This book opens up with introducing us to Aibileen and Minny, and I instantly connected to both of them. I can't comment on if they're stereotypes or not because I am, frankly, not educated much in that department. The only complaint I had about them really (besides the fact that they may be stereotypes) isn't even about them. My complaint was that I didn't get why Treelore was a part of the book. All his death does is give us a few emotional paragraphs and make Skeeter seem like an awful person for stealing his story.

And, yes, Skeeter does steal his story. I don't remember it being mentioned a single time that she only got the idea after Aibeelen mentioned that her dead son was going to write an expose on his white boss. And, hell, maybe it was mentioned, but it's still a ****** thing to do.

Actually, let's talk about Skeeter a little bit more because I loathe this girl. She's really going to sit here and complain about how 'oh, I want to write the story myself' and 'oh, Minny doesn't want to talk about her husband' and 'oh, I'm putting my social life at risk' all while working with people who could literally ******* die because of her dumb ass? HELL to the no.

The part where I actively started to hate her was when she is talking to Minny and brings up her husband. Minny instantly sets a boundary and says 'no, I don't want to talk about this.' But Skeeter just pushes because that's all she does throughout the book.

Not only that, she still manages to stay in her comfortable little chair while these women risk their lives to help Skeeter. There's a point in the book where Skeeter is talking to her mother's maid and when the maid brings up her mother, Skeeter changes the subject because she doesn't want to hear awful **** about her own mother??? I hate to break it to you, babe, but in order to 'deconstruct racism' like you think you're doing, you have to look inside your own family and wonder 'huh, I wonder why things are the way that they are.' You don't get to not get your hands dirty and still get praised for being so brave and so kind .

*sigh*

Racism (or any kind of prejudice for that matter) is not something that needs to be turned into a feel-good story in order to make whoever the oppressor is feel comfortable. Racism is a dark and gruesome thing that has lasted centuries and cannot be easily split into "some good, some bad." Chances are, if you're reading this, you're not a child, so go read something that pushes you outside of your comfort zone because that is the only way the true horrors of racism will be realized. (two non-fiction books I thought were really good were White Tears/Brown Scars , and So You Want to Talk About Race )

Hey, maybe this did push you out of your comfort zone, but just know that this is a very 2D view on racism. It was also written by a white woman who will never experience it firsthand. You can read this book and enjoy the story all you want, I'm not stopping you. I like to read To Kill a Mocking Bird so I'm in no place to judge, but when you read books like these, it needs to be acknowledged that it's written from a place of privilege. I saw somebody recommend a book called Coming of Age in Mississippi that apparently deals with similar topics and I will hopefully be reading it soon.

Things I did like about this book before people accuse me of being 'too negative': Minny and Aibileen. Celia Foote. Any situation where Skeeter didn't exist.

Anyway, if you can't tell, I didn't like this book. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'm going to go drink a coca cola and eat some cheese and crackers.

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