Stephanie Land’s Maid gives voice to those of us who have lived below the poverty line. Land cleaned other people’s houses while her own walls were covered in black mold that made her child sick. She lost precious wages standing in line for food stamps. She filled out endless paperwork to get childcare so she could work scrubbing other people’s toilets. Maid is an honest look at life in the welfare line. This is not a story about pulling yourself up by your bootstraps, the characters are not blameless Dickens orphans. Life is complicated, we miscalculate. But for some of us, those without boots to begin with, complications can be catastrophic. I’m grateful for this true book and its potential to help us all disentangle ourselves from our prejudices toward the poor.
–Tina Ontiveros, Klindt’s Booksellers and Stationers, The Dalles, OR
Last week’s snow storms meant that Stephanie Land’s event with Jennie Shortridge at Elliott Bay Book Company had to be cancelled (maybe to be rescheduled, though?), but when the streets clear, it’s a great idea to support local businesses and debut authors by picking up a book at Klindt’s, Elliott Bay, or another independent bookstore. You can see the author’s upcoming event schedule here.