A review by mayebee
A Manual for Cleaning Women: Selected Stories by Lucia Berlin

5.0

This should be required reading for everyone. I’ve never consumed media that humanized poverty, alcoholism, womanhood, chronic illness, and the struggles of being an immigrant in America (& much more) the way this book did. Some chapters are unbelievably devastating and do not have happy endings (as life goes) but Lucia’s lightness and humility makes each story shockingly digestible. To have such a distinct voice come through in a selection of semi-fiction (is there a word for that?) shorty stories from many perspectives puts Lucia’s writing in a league of its own. I could not recommend this book more. AND READ. THE. PROLOGUE.