Image for The Downstairs Girl
Good Read

The Downstairs Girl

by Stacey Lee

Synopsis

From the critically-acclaimed author of Under a Painted Sky and Outrun the Moon and founding member of We Need Diverse Books comes a powerful novel about identity, betrayal, and the meaning of family. By day, seventeen-year-old Jo Kuan works as a lady's maid for the cruel daughter of one of the wealthiest men in Atlanta. But by night, Jo moonlights as the pseudonymous author of a newspaper advice column for the genteel Southern lady, "Dear Miss Sweetie." When her column becomes wildly popular, she uses the power of the pen to address some of society's ills, but she's not prepared for the backlash that follows when her column challenges fixed ideas about race and gender. While her opponents clamor to uncover the secret identity of Miss Sweetie, a mysterious letter sets Jo off on a search for her own past and the parents who abandoned her as a baby. But when her efforts put her in the crosshairs of Atlanta's most notorious criminal, Jo must decide whether she, a girl used to living in the shadows, is ready to step into the light. With prose that is witty, insightful, and at times heartbreaking, Stacey Lee masterfully crafts an extraordinary social drama set in the New South.

Available format(s):

VOICEText (H)

Log in to read

What's an Audio Format

Book Information

Copyright year 2019
ISBN-13 9781524740955
ISBN-10 1524740950
Class Copyright
Publisher Penguin Young Readers Group
Subject Juvenile Fiction
File Size 0 MB
Number of Pages 384
Language ENG
Shelf No. NC849
Grade Range 7-
Ages 12-
Lexile 810L
Curriculums Texas Education Agency: Featured Titles Trademarks