Rating: 
Summary: Good for a laugh&feel better about your parenting skills
Review: When a book is surrounded by a media blitz it is easy to hesitate before reading it, especially a first novel. Don't let that stand in the way of reading The Nanny Diaries. Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus have crafted a funny, sharp look at the nanny business from the working end...Nanny, as she is to be known, has decided that part-time child care will be the perfect way to pay for her final year at NYU. After all, she has been babysitting for years, been a nanny before and knows what to look out for. When the X family finds her,and she becomes the part-time tender for Grayer her careful plans seem to be working, for a moment. This humerous, bittersweet novel looks at the lives of the people who care for Grayer and no matter how she tries, Nanny is swept into the web of the X'es lives. Soon it seems every waking moment is to be available to cater to Mrs. X as well as to follow odd, intricate instructions regarding Grayer's food. Despite the mountains of lists and educational enrichments,and unrealistic expectations, Nanny and Grayer soon do what nannys and kids have done for years ....play and have fun. And as Nanny sees the adults in his life seemingly fall apart she is determined to help him just stay a little boy. I talked to several friends who have worked as nannies and they said the book ran true with them, not so much the specifics, but the tug of war of trying to balance concern for a very snmall boy with "it's just my job".
Rating: 
Summary: Breezy and entertaining
Review: This is a fun, breezy novel perfect for the beach. Written in a voice similar to Bridget Jones's Diary, The Nanny Diaries is a hilarious look at the rich (and dysfunctional) New York City families and their nannies. It's hard not to finish it quickly, and when you do you'll be overcome with chutzpah--'Hmph! They may be rich, but they certainly aren't happy!'I only have one complaint: the characters are over-simplified. The parents are bad, bad people, the boyfriend is cute and smart and sweet, and the nanny is dedicated and altruistic. It would have been a more satisfying read had the characters been slightly more complex. As a college student who's just finished her finals, this book was just what I needed: easy, fun, and entertaining.
Rating:
Summary: Yikes!
Review: I couldn't believe what I was reading, and I was just GLUED to every page! Some of the stuff in this book is so bizarre, you just know it has to be true.
Rating:
Summary: Cute and horrifying
Review: I could identify and enjoyed the book. Like so many others I worked as a CAREGIVER for many years in my teens and even early 20s before graduating from the school so demonized in the book..the USC Gamecocks! In fact believe it or not even after I began my career as a legal aid lawyer I babysat for couples vacationing at Myrtle Beach (my home at the time). The abuse I took for $1.00 an hour (am I dating myself?)... that was the pay in the 70s. One couple hired me every Saturday night and I would take care of their three kids AND thoroughly clean their filthy house, without extra pay, just because it repulsed me so much. Now I am a mother of a 3 and 1 year old and preparing for our very FIRST paid babysitter tomorrow night! I will not be like these horrible people. For one thing, we are not wealthy!!
Rating:
Summary: Buy this book, even if you don't think you'll like it ...
Review: I didn't know what to expect when I purchased "The Nanny Diaries", in anticipation of a day-long bus trip to Washington DC. I generally gravitate toward more 'serious' fiction by the likes of James Patterson, Anita Shreve and Nicholas Sparks. At first glance, "The Nanny Diaries" appeared 'frivolous', and not worthy of my full attention. To my surprise, however, I found that once I started 'The Nanny Diaries', I could not put it down - so much so, that I even dreaded the "pit stops" along the way of my 7 hour bus trip, which only disrupted my reading-time. You will empathize with Nan (who is the Nanny in this story), and you are sure to love (and truly feel sorry for) Nanny's 4 year old charge Grayer, who is apparently named based on his parents' desire for him to blend into the woodwork of their upper east side Manhattan apartment. I won't take the time to describe, in any detail, the antics which Mrs. (and Mr.) X pull as they take blatant advantage of their college-age nanny through the course of her employment, except to say that this book is so engaging, you keep turning the pages to see what will happen next ... Although the ending is a little weak, "The Nanny Diaries" is a wonderful, light and funny summer read, which left me hoping for a sequel!
Rating:
Summary: The Nanny Diaries
Review: I obtained Nanny Diaries on tape (read by Julia Roberts) and listened to the story while driving to Florida. The journey (through the diaries) was delightfully entertaining. It was funny, heartwarming and thought-provoking. Suffice to say that we did not want the story to end.
Julia Roberts is wonderful in the role of Nanny, and in her portrayal of the other characters in this marvelous story. Get your copy of the recordered version today. Get two!! You will want to share - without losing track of your own cherished copy.
Rating:
Summary: A good read.
Review: i think this was a good read to learn about what it is like being a nanny in today's day and age. The joy one gets of it and the challanges. I think it's worth reading. The only thing I disagree with is the bad words used in the book.
Rating:
Summary: Fabulous Book! I could not put it down...
Review: This book is a great read. As a former nanny, I could easily relate to this book. My experience was wonderful, but the authors made it easy to relate to their experiences. I could not put the book down, as I found myself reading it all the time!
Rating:
Summary: This is my second-favorite nanny...
Review: Nobody can replace Mary Poppins for me! But Nanny in this book is a great character--one that you would like to get to know--and that you feel you would like and would be friends with if you could get to know her.
Rating:
Summary: Reality based vs. "sitcom" based look at child care.
Review: The Nanny Diaries: A Novel by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus takes a look at the "Nanny" experience from the viewpoint ofunbiased professional experience. Being a Nanny for McLaughlin and Kraus is a job-not a glorified Marry Poppins replay. It's clear they took it seriously. It's also clear they fully understand the various dynamics that make the job so difficult. There's the parents reaction to the arrangement, which will be distinctly characterized by why they hire someone in the first place. Do they want a surrogate mother? Or just someone to help out where they have time constraints? Do they view their caregiver as a professional or just a grown up tennager? Are they relieved or guilty to be entering into this sort or arrangement? McLaughlin and Kraus give it to us straight. The job is a window into a family's life. As such, it has the cadence of family life--funny and sad at turns, tedious and stressful at turns, fulfilling anf frustrating at turns. McLaughlin and Kraus have a brisk and engaging writing style that does indeed grab your attention and keep it. However, it's also true that the book is riddled with the usual problems one would see with a collaborative as well as a debut effort--uneven emotional pitch, hery-jerky writing on occasion and, at times, seperate writing voices. These are blemishes, however, and while at time distracting, they don't ever truly disrupt the flow of things. In the end the book is more about the experience than the meaning of the job--a bit of a disappointment. It is an engaging read, however, and well worth the effort.
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