[A Book Review of THE HELP, a novel by Kathryn Stockett, reviewed by Sandra Cline]

Have you ever heard the expression, “Judge me by the footprints I leave behind”? The main characters in the bestselling book, “The Help,” act upon that creed, no matter the consequences …. and their lives reflect the layered meanings of that deceptively simple phrase. Though some of the book’s characters are consciously aware that they are doing this, and others are not, the reader is left with another truth: some people make the world special just by being in it.

The same thing holds true for this exceptional book: the world is made a better place for THE HELP having been written. A quote from the novel’s front flap cover: “In pitch-perfect voices, Kathryn Stockett creates three extraordinary women whose determination to start a movement of their own forever changes a town, and the way women— mothers, daughters, caregivers, friends—view one another. A deeply moving novel filled with poignancy, humor, and hope, THE HELP is a timeless and universal story about the lines we abide by, and the ones we don’t.”

This character-driven story (set in the early 1960’s in Jackson, Mississippi) works as well as it does because we fall in love with the characters. I had already decided to highlight the following excerpt when I learned that it is a section of the book that the author is particularly proud of: “I linger at the window. Outside, a fine rain has started to fall, misting the glassy cars and slicking the black pavement. I watch Lou Anne slip away in the parking lot, thinking, There is so much you don’t know about a person. I wonder if I could’ve made her days a little bit easier, if I’d tried. If I’d treated her a little nicer. Wasn’t that the point of the book? For women to realize, We are just two people. Not that much separates us. Not nearly as much as I thought.”

THE HELP’S message is as timely and as relative to today’s world as any other time in our country’s history. Within the story lies many subtle and not-so-subtle points, including this one: Bigotry and racism are born and bred (and propagated) via families, via societal norms, across generations.

If a child is raised in a racist home, it follows that such a child will carry those beliefs and attitudes forward; AND, that ignorant and limited point-of-view will negatively affect every aspect of his (or her) life. In order to stop the cycle of prejudice, racial or any other kind, you must start with the children.

THE HELP also proves, with a story-style that is both poetic and pragmatic, that to give in to hatred would mean sinking to the same low, abominable “level” of those who are repressing you. The novel’s characters do not resort to violence as they fight against entrenched, socialized repression. Instead, they simply speak their own truth.

THE HELP is another step toward a brighter day, Dr. King’s vision of a time in which a person isn’t judged by the color of their skin, their gender, sexual orientation, religious beliefs, or any other kind of label.

Hope abides. Hope floats. There will come a time when each of us is recognized solely for who we are on the inside, for the footprints we leave behind.

We (as a society) would do well to heed the wise words of Marian Wright Edelman: “If you as parents cut corners, your children will too. If you lie, they will too. If you spend all your money on yourselves and tithe no portion of it for charities, colleges, churches, synagogues, and civic causes, your children won’t either. And if parents snicker at racial and gender jokes, another generation will pass on the poison adults still have not had the courage to snuff out.”

Oprah Winfrey spoke for many when she said, “I am where I am because of the bridges that I crossed. Sojourner Truth was a bridge. Harriet Tubman was a bridge. Ida B. Wells was a bridge. Madame C. J. Walker was a bridge. Fannie Lou Hamer was a bridge.”

And now, because of author Kathryn Stockett, her inspiring novel “THE HELP” is a bridge, too.

[Sandra Cline is the executive editor of DanceoftheSpirit.com and author of the critically-acclaimed novel "Pug Sheridan"]