According to the New York Times, Kathryn Stockett, author of The Help, a bestselling novel about black maids working for white families in 1960s Mississippi, has been hit with a lawsuit by a woman who works as a maid for relatives of the author. Ablene Cooper is asking for $75,000 in compensation for the unauthorized use of her name and for emotional distress, claiming that Aibileen Clark, the principal character in the book is based on her and that Ms Stockett disregarded a request not to use Ms Cooper as a model for the character. Ms Cooper says that the author’s relatives, who happen to be Ms Stockett’s brother and sister-in-law, support her lawsuit.
Mary B., Reader’s Services