Class by Stephanie Land

 

I did not realize that the show we watched, “Maid,” was by this same author. We really enjoyed that show.

I have had “Class” sitting on my shelf for a while and decided to give it a read. I really enjoyed this author’s writing style. While a lot of times I find a narrative form of a story not for me, this one was very well written, I thought. And while it may seem to some that she is bemoaning and complaining about her life, it’s not really like that. She is just describing in a realistic way how her life was juggling being a single mom, a lot of heartache, going to school, and holding down her own business, not to mention trying to find some time for herself. She also doesn’t have a lot of money so paying the rent (even if she had a roommate) and buying food as well as providing for her daughter’s basic needs also became a juggling act.

I think all of these challenges made her who she is. I think it taught her daughter, Emilia, that sometimes even the smallest choice is a big one. All she really wanted was stability, less of a struggle, and someone to share her life with, someone to take part of the load off her shoulders. Not having that, I truly believe she did the best she could. I was also interested in reading how she struggled with applying for help – the negativity it would possibly bring upon her, not to mention her own self-image of needing the help, being embarrassed to need the help.

Even in today’s world, I often find myself wondering how single parents manage – working (sometimes more than one job), raising children, paying the bills, going to school, and the multitude of other things parents do. Hats off to all of you!