Rating: 
Summary: Entertaining and there's truth behind the fiction...
Review: As you the reader will likely know, the authors worked as nannies for years in New York City, so their novel really is "authentic" in its portrayal of the nanny's everyday routines and ups-and-downs. While they say Nanny Diaries is not autobiographical, it's likely they wrote some of their individual personalities and experiences into the character simply known as Nanny. The story's first several chapters are very funny, and there's a great deal of ridicule, satire and name-dropping to set the tone. The last third of the book is not funny though. Rather, it's sad to read how the parents of Nanny's charge, whom she affectionately nicknames Grover, completely disrespect Nanny's concern and love for Grover's well-being. They do everything imaginable to avoid bonding with their child, and at the same time, criticize and belittle Nanny's competence as a nanny and best friend to him. The book is more than just a work of fiction. It's also a pointed and (likely) accurate look at a niche of American society that can afford the luxury of private child-care/nannies while they pursue their selfish lives. I've read that Miramax has bought the film rights, and Julia Roberts is reportedly interested in playing Nanny. I'm more than sure this will make a great movie, and Julia Roberts will be the perfect "Nanny" to bring the character to life!
Rating: 
Summary: Like Chinese food
Review: The Nanny Diaries was a delight to read, and it flew by, but in the end I felt that it ended too soon. It was basically a year in the life of our heroine Nanny, but come the end of that year I felt that an ending was missing. As in real life things aren't tied up in a nice, neat little 'sit-com' style bundle; there's no here's the obvious ending with the moral of the story prominently displayed. But in a book, I like to have an ending, I like for there to be a hint 'more to come' but that all that the character's have gone comes to a decissive end and I felt The Nanny Diaries fell just short of that. While truly enjoyed the book, and I will gladly read the next books that Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus write (whether together or on their own) I felt let down at the end. A sort of 'Chinese food for dinner' kind of longing for more came over me, there obviously had been enough on my 'plate' or else I wouldn't feel so hungry....
Rating:
Summary: Deliciously real....
Review: I'm all about not wasting my precious time on silly books. This is a great book to devote a weekend to. 'Nuff said.
Rating: 
Summary: Best Summer Read Yet!
Review: I have read over 10 books so far this summer and none have both entertained me and enlightened me like the "Nanny Diaries". I still shake my head when I think about some of the things these "moms" do (or don't do). Clearly, money can't buy maternal instinct. The question that sticks in my mind is, why do these women have children to begin with? Why have a child and then hand him or her over to be raised by a stranger? It baffles me. This book should be an eye opener to all those women who may see snippets of themselves in the "fictional" (year, right!) situations portrayed in this book. Remember ladies, the best thing you can spend on your children is TIME! This book is a summer must.
Rating:
Summary: Loved It!
Review: I bought this book to pass the time on a flight, and I couldn't put it down! I don't believe that the book is meant to be "laugh-out-loud" funny, though it does have humorous moments. It seemed more like a realistic portrayal of a nanny's story. Both the characters and the plot were very believable, sometimes sadly so. Nanny struggles between her hatred for her job - dealing with the X's - and her love for her job - caring for Grayer, and gives insight to what it might be like to be a nanny. This is the most enjoyable book I've read in a long while.
Rating: 
Summary: Money could have been better spent elsewhere
Review: I purchased this book for light summer reading because of all the hype. Talk about LIGHT reading! The only thing really good about this book is its marketing and promotion. This book should have been rated as a teen book, but did not have enough real substance to make the reader turn the page. I finally saw why so many people are reading this book. Its so boring... but after paying for it you hate to not finish it (but your not in any hurry). Lets hope it pays for the girls college loans and I will consider the money as a donation to their college fund.
Rating:
Summary: Worth your time.....especially if you are a parent.
Review: Compelling.... I bought the book on tape and have already listened to it twice. It is compelling both in the story line and reading style. I feel like a better parent and person because I appreciate having raised good kids myself, and never asking someone else to do what I would not. For once, I am really glad that I am not rich, and do not feel the "need" to have things a specific way all of the time. Good kids come from good parenting, and nothing more. Kudos to the authors for telling their, and many others', story.
Rating: 
Summary: Bogged down by its writing style..
Review: The Nanny Diaries in theory was a really good idea--exposing the lives of insanely rich Manhattan socialites and their lack of care for their children, etc, and what they put their nannies through. The intro (about the first 5 pages) was perhaps the best part of the book, excellently executed with a style and grace lacking in the rest of the book. The rest of the book really isn't that bad, but the writing style drags it down. It is written almost like a teenage-girl would talk, and it gets incredibly annoying. You find the authors saying things like " OH my ..., there goes my Harvard HOTTIE! OMG he is so cute!" etc, and it just takes away from the story. This book could have really said something about this secret subculture of ignorant rich parents, but instead is ruined by its show of idiotic language.
Rating:
Summary: Great read!
Review: I enjoyed this book very much. Nanny is a hip, smart child-care giver that has compassion for her charge. And boy, does poor little Grayer need it!
This book is funny, yet also thought-provoking and even a bit sad. It is an interesting peek into the lives of the ultra-rich and the ultra-subjugated that serve them. The authors write crisply and the book moves along at a snappy pace. I never grew bored with it. In fact, I hated to put it down.
I have already passed this one along to two other people to enjoy.
Rating:
Summary: frustrating
Review: This book is not badly written, but anyone pushing it as a comedy has got to be kidding themselves. There are funny parts, to be sure, but mostly the book is just full of frustration. As I read, I became more and more agitated, and though my job has nothing to do with children, by the end of the book I was even feeling irritated with my job. I would have felt better if we knew Nanny came out alright or at least got some sort of revenge. No one, and I mean no one would allow someone to walk all over them that badly. Even Mary Poppins would have blown.
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