Rating: 
Summary: addictive
Review: I finished this book in two days - an amazing feat given my short attention span. It is an addictive novel. The characters are three dimensional and (sometimes excrutiatingly) believable, and I just hope that the rich mommies with nannies raising their children recognize themselves in the pages of this book. The story made me sad and angry, having worked for people like the Xs and knowing that their kids are suffering just like Grayer.
Rating:
Summary: Fun of the moment - captures someting going on
Review: The book is a fun escape - quick read - laugh - and captures a particular time and place and group of people in New York with some zingy details - for such young authors the book is pretty well written - some nice social commentary - but with this and the devil wears prada i worry about these twenty three year old young women who can only muster a "uh sorry?" "okay" "uh well um" in the face of things - but then again they are young and in real life i guess they cashed in in a big way. Good for them and a relevent book in the cache of american life. The little detials are rich - and it does capture the scene which is what good writing does.
Rating: 
Summary: good read goes bad
Review: This novel started out funny and witty but became a tad whiny towards the end. I could not sympathize with Nan, because PLEASE, she could always look for another employer. Not a book I'd recommend to my best friend.
Rating: 
Summary: Flat Out -- A Great Read!
Review: The Nanny Diaries, a novel by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus (themselves former nannies) is an incredible look into the bizarre world of the Park Avenue pampered rich and the abused caregivers hired to insulate them from the burdens of raising their own children. The aptly named Nan, an NYU senior, agrees to care for Grayer, the four-year-old only child of Mr. and Mrs. X, wealthy New York socialites. Mr. X, an investment banker, is almost never home as he splits his time between his job and his none-too-subtle Chicago mistress. Mrs. X, his self-centered and spoiled wife, has no job, no responsibilities, doesn't cook, clean or care for the apartment and yet is constantly too busy to be bothered with anything to do with her son, leaving everything to Nan, who finds her role shifting from part-time help to surrogate mother. An excellent story, which alternates smoothly between ironic humor and serious emotion. I highly recommend this book. Other recommended titles: White Oleander by Fincher, The Losers' Club by Richard Perez
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: When I began reading this book, I was intrigued. But as I went through, I began to wonder how parents such as Mr. and Mrs. X can neglect a child so. And if they take therapy, how no one noticed that the son was suffering from love loss syndrome. Through Nanny, the child can love someone who loves him back, regardless if she's wearing a mink stole. I must say though I loved this book, I was disgusted by these NYC high and mighty people. Child Protective Services ought to burst into these homes, kids with moms on crack, parents who hire someone else to care for the child they spent nine months carrying around as if it is some piece of cattle. I applaud Nanny for getting out when she did. I became physically exhausted reading this, sharing in Nanny's turmoil.
Rating:
Summary: What a story!
Review: I thought being a mom of active toddler twins was hectic enough ~~ but my babies are lazy compared to the high-society children. This book is funny and also disturbing and sad. The one question that resonant through my head is, why do these people have children if they don't care about them on a daily basis? Here is Nanny, a part-time nanny who takes care of Grayer X, and her job ends up being a full-time job. She isn't allowed to have a life outside of caring for Grayer. She gets involved in the mess of Mr. X's adulterous affairs and Mrs. X's preoccupation with getting manicures/pedicures. Good grief, don't these people have a life?And The X's child is torn between all these people ~~ Nanny tries to leave but she is the only one who geniunely cares for the little boy in her charge. She is a graduate student working on her thesis and trying to graduate as well ~~ and her life becomes embroiled with The Xs. It is funny in some spots but it's very disturbing to realize that there are people out there who expect everyone else to raise their children and fire them on the spot if they aren't doing their job. I didn't learn Latin till I was 14 ~~ and they're expected to learn Latin by the age of 4, in order to improve their chances to get in a better school. Appearances mean everything to these people ~~ but yet they don't spend any quality time with their children. It makes me glad to be a middle-class mom who actually takes care of her children ~~ and knows them. Unlike those high-society people. I admire Nanny for trying to keep her job as long as possible but was relieved to see the end of that job! It's an enjoyable book ~~ it is also addicting ~~ the name-dropping and the brand-names are enthralling. You can't help yourself by turning the pages to see where this is going. 11-19-03
Rating: 
Summary: A sad story, really.
Review: I have to say that the only reason I kept reading this book was to get the point where Nanny told the Xes off. And when it never happened, I realized that I hated this book. Sure, some of it was funny, but mostly it was sad. Sad for the kid, sad for the puppy, but mostly sad that anyone would put up with all the crap & never say her piece. The whole bit about grace at the end was a crock. I felt so gypped. And the whole device of no names, that was lame. Yeah, we all know people like this exist & the idea that you have to hide identity, it just didn't work for me. It was an added written device that fell flat. And the love story...what love story? I know it was just a subplot, but really why bother. But all in all, yes, it was well-written & the characters were entertaining, though I guess I'm looking for more than that. I think most readers are. Once you get beyond the shocking way these upper-echelon "parents" treat their children & their help (which I guess is only shocking to people who don't know these people), it's the same old story of someone with no backbone putting up with a job that sucks. Nanny was the main character & she couldn't pull it off.
Rating:
Summary: They hate it 'cause it's true!
Review: Don't believe the bad reviews. From what I can see, people don't like 2 things about this book: the parents and the plot. They don't like the parents because they don't want to believe these people exist. Well, they do. I work at a well known children's retail store in New York City and I can tell you these people exist. Their nannies bring them in for story time and I had one of these women try to get me fired because I told her she couldn't return an open video. Believe it, people. As much as we all want to think every parent is loving and wants time with their children, to some they are truly "accessories." ***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!***
***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!***
***WARNING: SPOILERS AHEAD!!!***
About the ending, I was frustrated as well, but it was also honest. Mrs. X ends up firing Nan and had started interviewing NEW nannies when Nan told her she had to delay her arrival to the family's summer place in Nantucket because the day they planned to leave fell on her COLLEGE GRADUATION. Apparently this was "taking total advantage" of the X's. I was frustrated. I wanted Nan to fight back. To have SOME power. But she doesn't. It's a sad fact. I want any person who hated the ending to tell me how YOU would have written it. And make it realistic! If you don't know what Manhattan elite act like, don't bother. These people hold the money, and therefore the power. Nan was helpless This book was honest and any detractors are living in a fantasy world
Rating:
Summary: How Grayer becomes Mr. X...
Review: The hype on this book kept me at bay initially, thinking it would only be fluff & whimsy, but there is much more here. That said, it is very funny, endearing, & a super read. Meet Grayer a small boy who expresses he's anger the only way a 4-yr old can--hitting, kicking, screaming, sticking his tongue out, etc. When we meet him he is losing a nanny he loves, because of a preceived slight by his mother. Enter Nan, the replacement. The relationship that develops between the 2 of them is dear, funny,& real. The parents, Mr&Mrs X, are so self-absorbed w/ statis & their own pleasures that they pawn, push & relinquish Grayer to Nan. The bond that forms shows what a child can become when given the time of a caring & loving adult. (I will always see "jazz hands" through Nan's eyes.) Because of Nan's love & commitment to Grayer, she puts up w/insults, accusations, & adults running over her & her needs. Grayer's needs are not primary to Mr&Mrs X either, he is a needed accessory that should not interfer w/ their lives. Mrs X "spatulas" him off whenever he runs to greet her. Mr X uses the tried & true method of ignore & keep walking, any adult can out move a toddler. That's why there are nannies, right? Keep the child amused, busy & clean. These elite Manhattan parents rush through their selfish lives dismissing the value of their much needed staffs, while seeking instant gratification through the "right" material trappings and the envy of aquaintances & friends through the right schools, the right vacation spots, the "current correct" restaurant, caterer & "Long-Term Development Consultant" for toddlers! Their view is so insular that all they can hope to raise is one of their own. It broke my heart to think that this special little boy would grow up to be his father.
Rating:
Summary: It's True!!!
Review: I am a full-time nanny. This book is more true than not. Nannies feel like we finally have a voice and it does happen to others. Mothers are appalled and cannot believe this is true. I have had several conversations with moms and they swear they, and their friends, do not treat their nannies like this. Unfortunately, I'm sure they do. I have had unbelievable things happen to me on the job and so have my nanny friends. I'm hoping that parents read this book and hopefully walk away contemplating how they treat their nannies.
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