Carnegie's Maid

I enjoyed Marie Benedict’s first novel, “The Other Einstein” so I really looked forward to this read and I was not disappointed.

“Carnegie's Maid” by Marie Benedict

is a fictitious account of a maid, Clara Kelley, an Irish immigrant who was supposedly the impetus behind Carnegie's philanthropy and the founding of free lending libraries and a maid to his mother. I found it an engaging historical fiction novel about individuals whose lives are dictated by social classes and the will to succeed. I like the fact Benedict enjoys bringing strong minded women to the forefront of her novels set within the context of history.

The story is told from the point of view of Clara Kelley. She is seeking employment to help her family in Ireland. It is her hope she can earn enough to keep her family from losing their farm. Her journey by ship to America was tough and many fell ill and died on the voyage. When Clara  arrives at the dock she hears her name being called by a gentleman but he is seeking a different Clara Kelley. So this Clara Kelley assumes the identity of a girl who was on the same voyage but had died. Deciding to take a risk, Clara follows the man to Pittsburgh to take a job as a lady’s maid for Mrs. Carnegie, the mother of Andrew.

Clara finds herself working in the home of the Carnegie family. She has no training or experience about the responsibilities of a lady’s maid. She learns her role quickly and becomes indispensable to Mrs. Carnegie. Clara keeps her true identity a secret and one day catches the eye of her employer’s son. He becomes interested in her business advice and eventually, a romance starts to form. 

Andrew Carnegie, originally a Scottish immigrant, grew to be the most powerful and richest man in America. He was assuredly a self-made man, one who grew to control the steel industry in America and later became a philanthropist. He has been credited with the concept of instituting a free library where all could educate themselves through reading books. Having had little formal education, Carnegie grew up in a family where education through books was valued. He carried this value throughout his life.

Carnegie’s story is interesting, however, especially how he made his money. Benedict doesn’t try to whitewash his tactics, including insider trading. She does a good job at painting Mrs. Carnegie, who is a true rarity in her day, as a shrewd businesswoman but socially insecure. Mrs. Carnegie is her son Andrew's chief confidante. Some parts I enjoyed were the details about the times and social mores such as the necessity of a chatelaine to help ladies, and contrasts of the wealth of the Carnegie's and their friends to the lot of the poor in Ireland and Pittsburgh.

The book gives you a good taste of the trials of the Irish immigrant and is a reminder how American prejudice at this point in history was directed squarely at the Irish Catholics. In some respects the book reminded me of Jane Eyre and other books from that time period where  some kind of love bridge between the social gap of the rich and poor is used a literary device. If you are a fan of the Downtown Abbey series then this is the book for you. It showcases the contrast between the upstairs and downstairs of the inhabitants of a wealthy home with servants.

As the story unfolds we read of the immigrants' struggles and the rise of the wealthy class in America during this time period. Here society is portrayed as an elitist and at the opposite end the struggles of those in both Ireland and America of people who are dirt poor. Carnegie, after amassing his wealth, reassessed his life and did whatever his money and fame brought him to help those less fortunate by creating free libraries, educational institutions and musems. Benedict does a great job painting the pictures of life as a tycoon during the industrial revolution bringing that time period to life.

Obviously Benedict did much research in creating this book, providing an honest look at the lives of ‘domestics’, the challenges of hardworking immigrants and the clear division of poor vs. wealthy, old money vs. new money. The historical details are fascinating and has made me more curious about business magnate and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie’s life. In other words. I scurried to google for extra details on the philanthropist who become arguably the richest man in the world, changing the lives of many. I highly recommend this book. My only two regrets; love does not prevail at the end of Clara's story and I had signed up for a seminar to hear the author speak at Tuscon Book Festival in March but the event was canceled. 

Some of Benedict's other titles