When it first came out I gave it a cursory look, but was distracted by some shiny object or another. Had I but dug in, I could have loved it longer! It is absolutely tremendous. It touches on several of my favorite themes - the servant class, early 20th century Jewish culture, unrequited love, bad parenting and, of course, evangelical Christianity!
The heroine, 14 year old Joan Skraggs, aka Janet Lovelace, leaves her father's farm after he burns up her beloved books. She finds herself in Baltimore where she is employed as a housemaid for the wonderful Rosenbach family. Well, we know they are wonderful eventually, but they are also deeply human and seeing them through the eyes of a sheltered young girl is just delicious. Janet tells her story in the form of a diary and her perspective is so true. The reader has the pleasure of seeing the bigger cultural picture, while still being carried away but Janet's story.
My favorite things about this book, which may be in my all time top 50, are it's take on how evangelical attitudes can be both compelling and dangerous, how navigating social castes is not as easy as we have been led to believe and how reading elevates, even as is damages.
First up - Janet wants to be a good Catholic. Her mother was and she wants to take "the blessed sacrament." She is training with the parish priest to be confirmed. Her religious fervor is tempered by her respect for the unselfish morality she sees in the way the Rosenbach's behave. There is a bit about how she learns that Judaism is unconcerned with hell and decides that it is a noble religion because there is no payoff, they are just good because it is the right thing to do. But she can't help herself - she witnesses to Mr. Rosenbach and the squirrelly grandson Oskar with little impact.
She also falls for one of the Rosenbach sons, but the divide between shiksa and nice Jewish boy is too great. Even more so, it seems, is the divide between servant and master. Schlitz handles this beautifully and alludes to the dangers that would face an attractive housemaid in a house with lower standards or creepier sons. The character of Malka, a house keeper in the "she's one of the family" mold straddles the line in a way that highlights the distinctions.
Finally, the worship of books and study is another religion to Mr. Rosenbach and his older son Solomon. Janet shares that faith with them and it is what elevates her as the book progresses. Ironically, Mimi, the Rosenbach's daughter who is Janet's age, hates reading, but brings the book to an extremely satisfying end by learning to love it just a little. I'll say no more about that. Mimi is not a major character, but she does a wonderful job of highlighting the differences in class. She and Janet live in the same house and are the same age - although Janet lies and says she is 18, rather than 14 to gain employment - but their circumstances couldn't be more different.
Finally, I have heard tell that LAS is a fan of Maud Hart Lovelace and I have to believe the the choice of Janet's new last name is an homage to her. Someday I am going to find out for sure! I watched a delightful book trailer where LAS said she thought of coming of age stories as books where girls learned to "settle down" and she didn't want to write a book where a girl settled down. She also describes Janet as a girl who has "an engine too big for her chassis" which is just perfect.
Janet has joined the pantheon of great bookish adorable heroines. Janet - meet Betsy, Jo, Anne and Laura. I am sure you will get along.
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