I don’t even know where to begin other than with a thank you. Thank you to Stephanie land for writing this beautiful, brilliant, and painfully raw book to shed light on such important circumstances. Thank you to the publishers and NetGalley for giving me an advance copy.

Many are familiar with Stephanie from her first book, Maid, or the Netflix series of the same name. Her sophomore book does not disappoint but actually raises the bar. So beautifully written I couldn’t put it down. I cried, laughed, and felt anger alongside Stephanie in this book.

I hope her work is found by those who will be most helped from the words and leads to important change in our world to care for families under the poverty line.

Brutal honesty for both the writer and reader. I was thrilled to get approved for the NetGalley of Class, the second memoir by Stephanie Land. I had read Maid and admired the author for her struggles and drive to overcome any challenge.
In the first half of Class I had an appreciation for the desire to get the degree and the challenge of coordinating the multiple schedules of college, part time work and kindergarten. However in the second half of Class, I learned more about myself and how I perceive a situation, and it was emotional. Ms. Land can write, bringing me into the moments as if I was there in a room or listening to a conversation. I assume there will be some pushback about choices made, but I would love to read the next book and see how the authors journey to where she is today evolved.

I really enjoyed both the book and Netflix series of Maid, but Class just didn't work quite as well for me. I had wrongly assumed that this would be about the writing and publishing of her first book, but it didn't get to that point in her life.

Firstly, I want to say that I really feel for Land and everything she has gone through and how much she had done for herself and her daughter. But, I'm also just not sure that this book treaded over any new territory. I feel so guilty for saying this because I think it's an important story to be told! And who am I to say she shouldn't keep telling her story even if it's similar to her last book.

Land is a strong writer, and she paints such a clear picture of what she has gone through. However, I found it to be a bit disjointed and slow at times.

Class is the follow on memoir to Land’s first bestseller maid which was also made into a successful Netflix series. I read maid and enjoyed Land’s look into her life as a single mother subsisting at minimum wage jobs. Class follows Land as she has moved to Montana to finish her college degree in English. She is still subsisting by taking student loans as well as various odd jobs to help pay her bills while in school.
As an adult student with a child, Land is at least 10 years older than most of her fellow students. Instead of “acting her age” , she spends her weekends going to bars and having casual sex when she can. She becomes pregnant after two of these encounters. She chooses to have an abortion after the first one, but decides to keep the baby after the second one. She has shown herself to be a caring mother in the first book and I cried that she chose to have an abortion.
I write this review as one who spent 28 years working in public higher education, mostly as a senior financial administrator. Land is writing as many I saw n the younger generations: entitled and looking for free everything. The problem is, who is going to pay for it? Public colleges give subsidized tuition to their state residents. They get state tax dollars to fund this. Land is insensed because she can’t get the same break as a non-resident.
She also takes out the maximum in loans to get a creative writing degree. Student loans may make sense for majors that lead to jobs with higher salaries but not the liberal arts in my opinion. Thankfully, Land is the one-in-a-million who is able to land a huge book contract and thus easily pay off her loans.
I also can’t get over her lackadaisical attitude about her abortions, especially since she clearly loves her daughter. This book is well-written, and a good look into Land’s worldview. But her views, which seem to be more and more common, make me really sad for her and those like her. I received a complementary copy from the publisher via NetGalley.

It is a nearly impossible task to follow after writing a truly amazing book, Maid. However, I did enjoy Class! It did drag at times, but would then pick back up. I enjoyed learning and reading about the characters and seeing their development. Will definitely be picking up the next book by Stephanie Land!

Thank you to net galley for the arc in exchange of an honest review.

I watched the Netflix series, Maid, but I have never read the book. The Netflix series was well-done and I really connected with the the main character, Stephanie. I, too, am a single parent and understand the difficulties of navigating parenthood alone, especially when resources are limited. I loved Maid so much that when I wanted to read the follow-up book, Class. Class had a different feel than Maid. Where Maid squeezed my heart, Class made me roll my eyes. It moved slowly at times and it felt like there was a randomness in some of the stories she peppered throughout the book. I nearly DNF'd this book multiple times in the first 50% because I would get interested in a part of the story and the author would jump to something else leaving the reader with whiplash and wondering what happened. Class was not a hit for me. I didn't connect to the author, nor did I enjoy her writing or the pace of the story. Although, this book isn't for me, I did find it thought-provoking and would make a good book club selection.

Thanks to Netgalley and Atria for this ARC.

I greatly enjoy Stephanie Land’s voice and story, though Class felt a bit flat for me. As an educator, I have met many students who faced similar struggles in balancing work and life while taking classes and trying to navigate higher education. However, I often felt that Land’s pride got in the way of her accessing resources that would be beneficial to her. Additionally, as a former English major myself, I found myself shaking my head at that decision. I’m glad she was able to follow her passion and it worked out, but there are so many other majors or short term certificates that she could have perused.

Thank you for the opportunity to read and review!

I now that this book has a huge audience, but honesty, to me its just okay.

Several years ago, I read Waiting and thought this book would have some of the Waiting vibes, but it didn't.

This book never got going for me. The writing was too slow and I ended up not caring about the story at all.

I am very picky about the books I read. I need them to go at a quick pace and don't care much for a ton of details and this book just bogged down.

I do appreciate how hard it is to write,

Every bit as well-written and captivating as Maid, Class examines the inequalities in America's higher education system as Stephanie navigates her way to a degree.

This book is the memoir of a 35 yr old white unmarried undergrad with an uninvolved baby daddy and a 6 year old daughter. The writing is top-notch but the situations play out like a cautionary tale. It is especially annoying to me to read about the author blaming society for her own bad life choices. As a Latina I found my self shaking my head. I kept wondering, "my family has been in this country for about as long as Stephanie has been alive, how is it that we know more about avoiding the financial and situational pitfalls she so willingly falls into time and time again?" Why doesn't she know better? Yet this book shows us that 8.2% of white Americans fall below the poverty line, and better yet why.

She spends so much of the book talking about a ridiculous MFA, which she thinks will make her a real writer. I was also an English major for undergrad, and while the professors talked about how wonderful MFA's are, to me it seems like a lot of navel-gazing and a waste of 50,000. She is a great writer and that is the strength here. It am not convinced that she needed that useless degree. And she's pretty naive if she thought she couldn't get a job as a receptionist without it. I'm tempted to quote Good Will Hunting “You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for $1.50 in late fees at the public library.” As far as I am convinced, all her degree got her was connections in the publishing world which she also could have gotten if she had spent some time researching them on the internet.

The content.... the retelling of her experiences having one girl, two abortions and one baby and a dog she can't afford. Lack of contraception, health care, good nutrition, meal planning skills.... This girl had no home training. I get that her mom was an absentee parent and her father was kind of checked out but she if only she could have known the language to ask her teachers or guidance counselors for help... oh wait, she did speak the language. She was smart. She could have asked for help in high school. Her choice of friends and men is equal to plenty of friends who are total dirt bags. It is a miracle her good writing has taken her out of poverty and hopefully her writing can stay ahead of her poor life choices. If that sounds judgy it kind of is. This is my unbiased review. As a Latina I am hard on the white poor in this country when they are like her. She has lived an experience that just by the longevity of her family's tenure in this country she ought to have avoided simple because she ought to have known better. Its is not as though she were one of my clients, new to this country, still trying to figure out laws and customs. She had a library card, she had teachers. She could have done a myriad of other things than what she did. It's kind of Miraculous that it worked out for her.

The content was 3 stars, the writing was 5. This equals 4 stars. I wish the author the best. This is my honest review.

Excellent follow up to Maid, Stephanie Land's debut. Wonderfully written, eye opening insight into the life as a struggling single mother living below the poverty line, juggling getting an education, working and a small child.

Thank you NetGalley and Atria Books for the kindle arc of this novel. While I admit I didn’t read her first memoir Maid, I fell in love with the character based off of her story. While reading Class, I found myself really feeling her anxiety and frustration with being a single mother and fighting the court system with an abusive ex.. all while trying to just SURVIVE. Her ability to push through every obstacle was so encouraging. I believe it’s difficult to make one feel all the emotions while reading a story sometimes but Stephanie Land did just that.

How do I write a constructive review without sounding judgy?

I hated this book. I finished it but had to read it one chapter at a time, take a break, read a chapter, take a break.

3/4 of the chapters in the book had the same three themes:
1. Money....every chapter had the author ciphering on how to spend money, how to get money, how much everything cost.
2. Time...every chapter had the author stating she didn't have time for this or that or her child, her schoolwork, etc.
3. Sex. For most of the book, the author could not go one chapter without partying, having sex, flirting, etc.

It was monotonous and extremely boring. I would get interested in something the author said and she would abruptly change topics. Her car dying, to Emilia missing school, new roommates, the author did this constantly.

The author engaged in risky behaviors, having an abortion and then NOT using protection for any sex that she had later. Then acted surprised that she was pregnant.
Rock climbing, then shocked that she was injured when she was scaling metal ladders to get to a better view.
Using roommates to watch her child, having the roommates do pick ups at the school.

The most infuriating was the constant refrain of I DON"T HAVE MONEY, then the very next paragraph talk about buying this, that, a new haircut, eating steaks, new clothes, ice cream, McDonalds etc.

Further this is another white lady struggle book that if she had been a person of color would NEVER have been published.

I could go on about what irritated me about this book, but mostly it was boring (see the above about what three things in every chapter) and contradictory (I have no family, I talked to my brother, texted my father, a cousin helped me give birth etc).

Review: I was so excited to get approved this one and devoured it. A well written memoir that has all the feels. Although her first book and the Netflix series were far grittier and more emotional, this one was a more enjoyable read.
Recommended For: Those who need a memoir about a strong woman.

Synopsis (from Netgalley, the provider of the book for me to review.)
********************************************************
From the New York Times bestselling author who inspired the hit Netflix series about a struggling mother barely making ends meet as a housecleaner—a gripping memoir about college, motherhood, poverty, and life after Maid.
When Stephanie Land set out to write her memoir "Maid", she never could have imagined what was to come. Handpicked by President Barack Obama as one of the best books of 2019, it was called “an eye-opening journey into the lives of the working poor” (People). Later it was adapted into the hit Netflix series Maid, which was viewed by 67 million households and was Netflix’s fourth most-watched show in 2021, garnering three Primetime Emmy Award nominations. Stephanie’s escape from poverty and abuse in search of a better life inspired millions.
Maid was a story about a housecleaner, but it was also a story about a woman with a dream. In Class, Land takes us with her as she finishes college and pursues her writing career. Facing barriers at every turn including a byzantine loan system, not having enough money for food, and navigating the judgments of professors and fellow students who didn’t understand the demands of attending college while under the poverty line—Land finds a way to survive once again, finally graduating in her mid-thirties.
Class paints an intimate and heartbreaking portrait of motherhood as it converges and often conflicts with personal desire and professional ambition. Who has the right to create art? Who has the right to go to college? And what kind of work is valued in our culture? In clear, candid, and moving prose, Class grapples with these questions, offering a searing indictment of America’s educational system and an inspiring testimony of a mother’s triumph against all odds.

I have not seen "Maid" on TV but I have read the book and having once worked in financial aid, I have seen this woman's plight many times as they try to better themselves via education. It is also a story of the haves and the have-nots, many who don't understand the life and demands of older students who are attending classes with them: people who are there to better themselves, not just party and get laid. Although I would question someone paying so much money for an arts degree in writing, it paid off for her, which is almost needless to say!
Like Maid, this is a searing book about what it is like to live below the poverty line: something I see every day in my clients who are also the haves and have-nots. I will recommend this book far and wide: it is excellently written and has an excellent comment on today's society, especially in the university/college town in which I live. (Ditto Montreal, the hometown of my heart!)
#shortbutsweetreviews

WARNING: THIS BOOK MIGHT BE TRIGGERING FOR YOU IF YOU ARE "RIGHT TO LIFE" - in fact, you might end up slut-shaming the author if that is the kind of person that you are.

Such great storytelling.I was so excited to be approved for an advanced read. I kept looking for this to be available on netgalley as soon as I heard she had finished the book. I read it in one weekend and it left me wanting more. I have such respect for the author and her story. I will recommend it to everyone, but feel bad they will have to wait until November to read it.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the Kindle ARC in exchange for an honest review. I felt so fortunate to be approved for Class by Stephanie Land. Class is a follow-up to Ms. Land's memoir "Maid," which went on to be a top seller and made into a limited series on Netflix. Class is every bit as good as Maid was. Reading about Ms. Land's struggles as a single mother, rarely letting herself get down to the point where she is not able to care of her daughter or continue with her goal of graduating from college, while piece mealing together enough work and money to keep going, while battling in the court system over child support and visitation with her ex. Although my years as a single mother weren't nearly as dire as those described in Class, I could relate with her struggles, the feelings of being "less-than" and maybe not a good enough mom. Even though I know from her prior memoir that things turned out ok in the end, its nevertheless a powerful story of a woman who is determined not to give up.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an e-ARC of this book in exchange for my honest review.

I have previously read Land's earlier memoir "Maid", and have seen the Netflix series based off of it. I honestly wasn't aware she was writing another memoir, but was curious what she and her daughter have been experiencing since then (I don't follow her on social media).

As with all memoirs, I feel that Land's unique story is important, and we can all learn from others' experiences. I wanted to know more about the issues of food/housing insecurity in America, and what options there are for single mothers below the poverty line.

I was an English major myself (under very different circumstances), so I was interested in the specific challenges she faced as an single, older student with a young child (and hungry). It w2s also interesting for me to learn more about MFA programs.

I struggle with this review, because memoirs especially are difficult for me to critique. I deeply admire anyone who publishes their memoir. That being said, there were a few things that didn't work for me. First, I just never connected to the author--I empathized with her, and was rooting for her, but never really felt like I liked her. I questioned some of the choices she made while having a young daughter-- involving drugs, sex, partying, etc.

I also really don't care for chapter titles that are so specific that the reader knows what's going to happen in that chapter. For example, chapters with titles such as ""Late", "I'm Pregnant", and "Lil' Sister" give away a bit too much specificity--I'd rather see chapter titles be a little more ambiguous so there is some element of surprise while reading.

As many reviewers wrote about her earlier book, I would've been interested in a little backstory involving her younger years (high school graduation through young adulthood) to see how those choices impacted or didn't impact the experiences she faced in "Maid" and "Class". Not to judge her, but just out of interest--she doesn't owe the reader that, but there just seems to be a chunk of her story left out for whatever reason. For example, I'm curious what led her to start college classes in Alaska but not finish her degree then. Or, her cousin Jen shows up towards the end of "Class"--does she have other family members who are also supportive and could've helped her over the years? Where did Jen suddenly come from?

This was a quick read.and I appreciate Land sharing more of her story.

I will share my review on Goodreads close to publication date (11/7/23).

I already knew that Land was a talented writer because of Maid. That book left such an impression on me. I actually recall being able to feel what Land was describing, the suffering and challenging times she had. Well, she's back with Class and once again has crafted an amazing memoir about education, our broken system and her very brave role as a mother. Reading about Stephanie and Emilia is a treat.

Thanks to NetGalley for the ARC. Five stars!

Outstanding book. This is one of those books that lets you stand in the shoes of the author and get a perspective that nobody else can give. A good read.