Mississippi-born Kathryn Stockett's debut novel, The Help, examines the complex relationship between white Southern families and their black domestic servants in the 1960s. A story of social awakening as seen from both sides of the American racial divide, the book highlights the conditions of black servitude—a century after the Civil War. The book was a No. 1 New York Times Best Seller and has been on the New York Times Best Sellers list for more than 100 consecutive weeks. A movie based on The Help, directed by Stockett's childhood friend and fellow Mississippian Tate Taylor, will be released in August 2011 by DreamWorks Studios.