On the HahaFiction shelf
Mary Jane
In the summer of 1975, fourteen-year-old Mary Jane takes a nannying job in Baltimore. Her conservative mother approves of working for a doctor. The doctor’s cluttered home, his unconventional family and two secret celebrity houseguests introduce Mary Jane to a kind of adult life her parents would find alarming.
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What makes it funny?
Mary Jane is the teenager, yet she brings the cooked dinners, ironed clothes and household routine. The adults supply the disorder, therapy and rock-star complications. Praise collected on the author’s site singles out Blau’s comic use of those mismatched households.
The comedy at work
Mary Jane’s orderly upbringing gives her a practical, sheltered view of the Cones. The jokes follow her efforts to make sense of their permissive household while she quietly makes it function.
Try this if…
Readers in book groups recommend the novel for its lighthearted appeal and fondly recall their own babysitting years. Some return for rereads; listeners particularly enjoy the singing in the audiobook.
Good to know
The story includes addiction, adultery, racism and open discussion of sex around a young teenager. Kirkus found its view of 1970s counterculture and difficult subjects overly sentimental.
More funny coming of age
Sources & further reading
- Reader discussion
Reader discussion
- Kirkus review
Review
- Library: published ebook
Library catalog
- Author: book and praise
Author commentary
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