James Joyce

"Clay" was actually a nice little excerpt from "Dubliners." It's simplicity was probably the best part of the story, it wasn't overpowering or lost in translation in a sense. I was super surprised at the fact the Maria was a prostitute. The way she is portrayed in the story would never remotely cause me to think that she was a prostitute. It is kind of weird that "reformed" prostitutes are working in family homes with their children. I don't mean to judge or anything but is there really such a thing as a "reformed" prostitute in the first place? Okay yes it happened in "Pretty Woman" but that clearly isn't real life. I know for certain that I would never want someone who does or did sell their body for money working in my house or around my family.

I don't know if it's just me but while I was reading the story I kind of got an inkling that maybe there were some feelings between Maria and Joe. There wasn't a particular line or phrase that confirmed this, it was just a slight feeling I got while reading. This really was a nice story because it simply told the story of a woman who worked for a family (in a sense these people were her family) and the normal things they do on a day to day basis. It would have been nice to read the entire novel because the little that I had the oppotunity to read was really nice.