Maid explores the underbelly of upper-middle class America and the reality of what it’s like to be in service to them. “I’d become a nameless ghost,” Stephanie writes about her relationship with her clients, many of whom do not know her from any other cleaner, but who she learns plenty about. As she begins to discover more about her clients’ lives-their sadness and love, too-she begins to find hope in her own path.
Her writing as a journalist gives voice to the "servant" worker, and those pursuing the American Dream from below the poverty line. Maid is Stephanie’s story, but it’s not her alone..
Comment: I was looking for a possible title to offer a friend for her birthday and of the genres I know she likes, this one popped up at some point. I ended up choosing something else, but the title of this book stayed with me and I ended up buying it for myself.
Stephanie Land is a young woman who sees herself with a young child, with no real support from her parents and with an ex who turns up to be an abuser. To make end's meet while she thinks about what to do from there, she works as a maid and studies at night. While some jobs are fine and she gets used to people's homes and those she interacts with, there are situations where everything is more difficult than she ever anticipated. While caring for her daughter is something she does tirelessly, there are many things that seem to bring her down and the system itself is one of them. Could Stephanie find a way to improve her life and of her daughter?
While reading this book I will admit I sometimes had conflicted thoughts: sometimes I felt Stephanie had not done really smart choices and some of her issues seemed a little one sided, but there were times I could see her experience was a hard and devastating one. Now that I've finished reading, I checked a few reviews and it seems my thoughts are as polarized among other readers; some loved this memoir, others think Stephanie was actually very entitled and whiny.
Thinking about this antagonism, I must wonder, could it be that for many people the details Stephanie uses to explain her life and work choices seem fantasy or exaggerated on purpose? So that readers have pity on her? Reading/seeing something can originate different reactions based on many things, but who among us has not judged someone else for this or that? I'm still thinking about this, but in the case that Stephanie really twisted what she went through so that now her autobiography garners more sympathy, then perhaps it's a good thing sometimes I felt I was reading this as fiction.
With this I mean, the "voice" Stephanie uses is very polite. Always. I kept thinking, of course the book needed to be edited, probably polished somehow so it could be published, but the texts are just too correct, somehow bland and even the supposed social commentary on issues like welfare and food stamps was a bit too politely correct. I get it, and I assume Stephanie's current career as a writer and how she often says she liked writing might have contributed to this, but... I did expect a more poignant or heartfelt narration, especially if this is her tale.
My doubts aside, the content was interesting for certain. I have not been in Stephanie's shoes, but some things she describes really seem to match what we know about some statistics, and I could easily imagine some of the scenes she mentioned. I actually expected her to detail even more the maid work she was doing, though. I see this is memoir about her life, but with that title, I really thought we would have more of her actual job and not the half-half of the job and her personal life. Of what she shares regarding the job, some things are really captivating.
Before I had my current job, I worked as a carer at an older lady's house. Her daughter was my employer and I'd do specific hours, mainly afternoon and night, until the old lady went to bed. She had dementia and a huge part of my job was to help her, spend time with her, but I also did some odd jobs like ironing and doing the dishes if necessary. I was not a full titled maid, but I had a little bit of that experience. When Stephanie writes about seeing her employers in a certain way... well, it's human nature. I also thought things to myself about my employer and the house and decisions they all made... It's just impossible not to think about it, even if one doesn't verbalize.
Saying this, I understand why some readers thought Stephanie was being unprofessional or careless, but I didn't see it that way. I guess it's one of those things, one might see something through a negative perspective, but until someone has actual experience of the same situation...anyway, I did expect more maid content from this novel, but despite that and what I might now perceive as less interesting, it was still a fascinating book to read and offered food for thought. I won't comment specific declarations Stephanie writes about because I don't know the full extend of the American system, but I suppose it's like in most countries: some things are not being done as well as they could, money lacks for many services, human resources aren't enough either, to name a few.
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