Nanny Returns

Taking a break from oppression in Afghanistan, I chose to return to New York and decided to read the Nanny Returns by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus. The book was mediocre in comparison to its prequel, The Nanny Diaries. Expecting a continuation of a college student’s journey after being forced out of the archetypal upper Manhattan nanny life style, I was surprised to be greeted by the same character, Nan, 10 years later and married. The book returns to the same family (the Xes) as its prequel, showing the results of a child growing up in such a life. It was interesting to re-meet Grayer, the child Nan nannied. He drops by unannounced, drunk, to uncover why the only person he looked up to as a child—Nan—had left him. I think while the neglecting of infants by their parents (creating the job of a nanny) is commonly acknowledged, the often unfulfilled need for love teenagers experience without parents that are around is often un-thought of. However, I would have liked to see the end of Nan’s struggles through college as she searches for a job after nanny-ing.