The Madams by Zukiswa WannerI found this book delightful! I mean it is not much of a labor women's studies book if you are looking for something heavy in the labor area. This is why I liked this book because I like themes in my books being subtle. This book examines three South African women's lives, all madams, all women who work and employ maids.
This book demonstrated what it means to live in a society which heavily values class and race, and it also shows that they are not the same thing. At times the book takes the reader too far into the lives of the madams, and the reader is wondering how realistic it actually is. However, the depiction of the maids is wonderfully accurate...the thankful maid who loves her madam and is honored to be like "one of the family," the maid who is abused by her madam and still keeps the family secrets, and the maid who has an affair with the mister of the house.
The class issues in the book are portrayed by the madams; the reader experiences the race issues and conflicts of having a maid of a different race. They are quick to discuss how lucky the maids are for having the opportunity to work for them regardless of the abuses they suffer or how they are spoken down to. I think it is a wonderful representation, and these madams could very well be in New York, London, or Hong Kong. I give it a 4/5.
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