The Downstairs Girl

 1. BIBLIOGRAPHY

Lee, Stacey. (2019). The downstairs girl. New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons Books for Young 

Readers. ISBN 9781524740955

2. PLOT SUMMARY

Set in Atlanta in 1890, seventeen year old Jo Kuan works as a lady’s maid during the day and a writer for a newspaper column at night.  Her writing in the newspaper column became popular but also controversial.  While she works to uncover her caregiver’s secrets, she finds out shocking secrets of her own past.  

3. CRITICAL ANALYSIS

The story is told through 17 year old Jo Kuan's perspective.  While working as a maid for a wealthy couple’s daughter, Jo has a dismissive disposition.  The author allows the reader to see Jo’s true character when she transforms into Mrs. Sweetie as she writes anonymously for the newspaper, The Focus.  Mrs. Sweetie is described “...like an old rash that keeps coming back, each time more cranky and twice as determined.  Mrs. Sweetie is bold in the columns she writes, not afraid to discuss what would normally be off limits.  This gives her the confidence she needs as the reader watches her flip back and forth from Jo Kuan to Mrs. Sweetie.  

Over halfway through the novel, a  strong message of standing up for what is right immerses. Mary, Noemi, Jo, and several others are allowed to help sew sashes for the Women’s Suffrage Race but find out they are not allowed to attend.  They are even told “The cause doesn’t need you.”  Mary is told by her boss that she needs to stay home that day and sew curtains. Mary proceeds to stand up and tells her employer, “I don’t want to do the curtains right now.”  She and the girls walk out holding their heads high.  This is a powerful message to anyone who has ever felt discriminated against or not good enough.  Another message that Noemi brings to light is, “It’s knowing your worth no matter what the crows tell you.”  

The effects of racial injustice are seen through figurative language such as  “Disappointment weighs heavy as a box of blocks on my heart” and “Mortification pours like molten iron from my face to my toes.”  Throughout the novel, Jo is constantly faced with discrimination, and the author paints a vivid image of this.  

Readers will connect with Jo, her loyalty, and her core values.  So much that when Jo finds out who her real mother is and the ultimate betrayal, we mourn for the life she never got to live.  Lines such as “...we are like the snail who has lost its shell…at least the snail never need care who its parents are.” Very melancholic lines spoken by the protagonist, and the reader feels it.  Siblings, mother, and father have all been kept secret though they were all in plain sight.  She saw them throughout her childhood and even again in her teenage years.  

In her acknowledgements, Stacey Lee mentions all the research and people who helped her with this book. She used the Stanford Library to uncover obscure documents, museums, personal interviews, and many institutions.  Her knowledge, interest, and dedication to this time period is evident in her author’s note.  

4. REVIEW EXCERPT(S)

Booklist, STARRED REVIEW: “This spectacular, voice-driven novel raises powerful questions about how we understand the past, as well as the ways our current moment is still shaped by that understanding.”

Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW: “Luminous . . . An optimistic, sophisticated portrayal of one facet of Chinese-American—and simply American—history.”

Publisher’s Weekly STARRED REVIEW: “This captivating novel explores intersectionality, conveys the effects of restrictions placed on women and people of color, and celebrates the strengths and talents of marginalized people struggling to break society’s barriers in any age.” 

School Library Journal, STARRED REVIEW: “Unflinching in its portrayals of racism yet ultimately hopeful and heartfelt, this narrative places voices frequently left out of historical fiction center stage.” 

5. CONNECTIONS

Other books by Stacy Lee:

Luck of the Titanic                ISBN  978-1524740986

Under a Painted Sky            ISBN  978-0147511843

Lead a class discussion about the power of language and its effects in our world today.