The Nanny Diaries

One young woman to take care of a four-year-old boy.

Must be bordering on masochistic.

Must relish sixteen-hour shifts with a nap-deprived pre-schooler.

Must love getting thrown up on, literally and figuratively, by everyone in his family

Mostly, must love being treated like fungus found growing out of employers Hermès bag.

Those who take it personally need not apply.

Who wouldnt want this job?

Nanny is a struggling grad student with no visible piercings. Mrs. X, of Park Avenue, doesnt work, clean, cook, or raise her own child. She makes appointments and lists. Nanny needs a job. Mrs. X needs someone accommodating. Nanny and Mrs. X need each other. In return, Nanny is subjected to erratic shifts, irregular paychecks, and the sullen moods of her four-year-old charge. Sentenced to every play date known to Central Park, and every gourmet-snack run she can handle, Nanny needs a diversion that an afternoon martini cant fulfill. Then she discovers a secret about Mr. X. Navigating a marriage on the rocks and the increasingly paranoid, impossibly demanding attitude of her employer, Nanny is redefining servitude. Because now, Nanny has something worth more than Mrs. Xs ill-fitting Prada castoffs as a thankless bonus.

Nannys acquiring the power of revenge…

“A national phenomenon.”

—Newsweek

“[Nanny is] Mary Poppins channeling Dorothy Parker.”—Time

“Diabolically funny.” –The New York Times

“A National Phenomenon.” -Newsweek

Wanted:

One young woman to take care of four-year-old boy. Must be cheerful, enthusiastic and selfless—bordering on masochistic. Must relish sixteen-hour shifts with a deliberately nap-deprived preschooler. Must love getting thrown up on, literally and figuratively, by everyone in his family. Must enjoy the delicious anticipation of ridiculously erratic pay. Mostly, must love being treated like fungus found growing out of employers Hermès bag. Those who take it personally need not apply.

Who wouldn’t want this job? Struggling to graduate from NYU and afford her microscopic studio apartment, Nanny takes a position caring for the only son of the wealthy X family. She rapidly learns the insane amount of juggling involved to ensure that a Park Avenue wife who doesn’t work, cook, clean, or raise her own child has a smooth day.

When the Xs marriage begins to disintegrate, Nanny ends up involved way beyond the bounds of human decency or good taste. Her tenure with the X family becomes a nearly impossible mission to maintain the mental health of their four-year-old, her own integrity and, most importantly, her sense of humor. Over nine tense months, Mrs. X and Nanny perform the age-old dance of decorum and power as they test the limits of modern-day servitude.

“[Nanny is] Mary Poppins channeling Dorothy Parker.” -Time

“Impossible to put down.” –Vogue

“McLaughlin and Kraus... [have a] carefully calibrated sense of compassion and delicious sense of the absurd.” -Entertainment Weekly