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seraphjewel 's review for:
Carnegie's Maid
by Marie Benedict
I love historical fiction. I love an insider's look into the life of one of America's most famous men. And I love a story that explores a women's quiet influence in history. You would think this would hit every mark.
Don't get me wrong, it's a very nice story. But I feel like it's just the bare bones. There are some great bits focusing on the socioeconomic gap between the Carnegies and recent Irish immigrants, and the discrimination the Irish Catholics faced when they came to America. There's a definite sense of struggle and it touches a bit on slavery. There's also a great bit about what happens when companies merge and how that affects jobs and people's livelihoods. And of course the class system and how that divide works when two from opposite ends of it start developing feelings for one another. It's for these reasons I'm giving it a three-star rating because otherwise, it was just "okay".
I feel like the problem is that all of these great bits are just that: bits. None of it is really given more than a few mentions to get an idea of what life was like. The book was way too short, in my opinion. I almost feel like I would get more out of an actual biography of Carnegie. If nothing else, this book did succeed in making me more interested in his life and wanting to read about him.
So, a nice enough read, but nothing really substantial.
Don't get me wrong, it's a very nice story. But I feel like it's just the bare bones. There are some great bits focusing on the socioeconomic gap between the Carnegies and recent Irish immigrants, and the discrimination the Irish Catholics faced when they came to America. There's a definite sense of struggle and it touches a bit on slavery. There's also a great bit about what happens when companies merge and how that affects jobs and people's livelihoods. And of course the class system and how that divide works when two from opposite ends of it start developing feelings for one another. It's for these reasons I'm giving it a three-star rating because otherwise, it was just "okay".
I feel like the problem is that all of these great bits are just that: bits. None of it is really given more than a few mentions to get an idea of what life was like. The book was way too short, in my opinion. I almost feel like I would get more out of an actual biography of Carnegie. If nothing else, this book did succeed in making me more interested in his life and wanting to read about him.
So, a nice enough read, but nothing really substantial.