The Calamity Club

Seventeen years after writing The Help, Kathryn Stockett is back with a new book! 

This slower paced, character-driven 650-page behemoth of a read is set in the 1930's American south and pulls readers into the lives and struggles of women as they navigate a tumultuous time with few choices at their disposal. 

The story is centred around two women: Birdie, a 'spinster' at 24-years-old, visits her self-centred, married sister Frances to ask her for money to pay the back taxes that threaten to leave Birdie, their mother and grandmother homeless. But Frances' new life is not as rosy as expected and through her connections, Birdie meets 11-year-old Meg who was abandoned by her mother and now lives at a girls' orphanage at the mercy of a ruthless head mistress.

Using the POVs of Birdie and Meg, Stockett introduces interesting issues, particularly how women were viewed and treated and the limitations put upon them in a system that was made to keep them down. But I felt these emotionally charged issues were handled with a light hand and while I enjoyed both POVs, Meg's storyline was more interesting and heartfelt compared to Birdie's moneymaking initiative (that has some readers clutching their proverbial pearls).

This was a good read, but I wanted more ... and less. More tension building (it lacked a big 'ta-da' moment), more depth and more connection between the two storylines. But less pages. Lawd! This was a long story that could have been whittled down by 200 pages (with less time spent on the day-to-day happenings with Birdie and her girls).

I enjoyed this book, just not as much as I had hoped (it had some BIG shoes to fill after The Help). I think fans of historical fiction will enjoy this story that features strong women who are up against small minds and unfair societal expectations. There are characters you'll cheer on and a couple you'll love to hate. 

The Calamity Club would make a good book club pick with its focus on the resiliency of women who do what they need to do in order to survive.

Disclaimer: My sincere thanks to Spiegel & Grau for the complimentary digital and paperback copies of this book that were gifted to me in exchange for my honest review. 

My Rating: 3.5 stars

Author: Kathryn Stockett

Genre: Historical Fiction

Type and Source: trade paperback/ebook from publisher

Publisher: Spiegel & Grau/DoubleDay PRHC

First Published: May 5, 2026

Read: March 31 - April 13, 2026

Book Description from GoodReads: The multimillion-copy-selling author of The Help returns with a bold, big-hearted novel about a group of unbreakable women, fighting for what’s rightfully theirs—and the power of friendship to change everything.

Oxford, Mississippi, 1933.

Abandoned by her mother one Christmas Eve, eleven-year-old Meg Lefleur has learned the hard way to rely on no one. Now one of the unadoptable "big girls" at the Lafayette County Orphan Asylum, she fights each day to keep her spirit unbowed.

Birdie Calhoun, unmarried and outspoken, has come to Oxford to ask her socialite sister to help the struggling family she's left behind. But as the Depression tightens its grip, Birdie discovers her sister's seemingly charmed life is a tapestry of lies.

Then, Birdie encounters Charlie, a woman running low on luck with little left to lose. When their fates—and Meg's—converge, Charlie comes up with an audacious plan to claim what's rightfully theirs. But in a place and time where hypocrisy is rife and women's freedom is fragile, even the smallest act of defiance can have dangerous consequences.

The Calamity Club will make you laugh, cry, and cheer—an epic testament to underestimated women who know that calamity can be the spark of new beginnings. This is Kathryn Stockett at her most confident, heartfelt, and hilarious—the triumphant return of one of the most beloved storytellers of our time.