The Perfect Nanny

“The baby is dead.”

The book’s horrifying first line serves to shock the reader and hook them with a troubling image, that of a dead infant. It also introduces the book’s climax, the murders of Adam and Mila, which the entire narrative will center around. This dark opening gives the rest of the novel, even the most innocuous chapters, an ominous tone, and it subverts the standards of the thriller genre by presenting the crime and the culprit at the beginning.

“No illegal immigrants, agreed? For a cleaning lady or a decorator, it doesn’t bother me. Those people have to work, after all. But to look after the little ones, it’s too dangerous. I don’t want someone who’d be afraid to call the police or go to the hospital if there was a problem. Apart from that… not to old, no veils, and no smokers.”

Following the introduction, these are the first words of the book’s “proper” narrative. Paul says them to Myriam when they are discussing what they want from a nanny. These words immediately introduce many of the book’s ongoing themes, including racism, sexism, and discrimination against immigrants.

“If she has children, it’d be better if they’re back in her homeland.”

This is the advice that Myriam’s friend Emma gives her when Myriam and Paul are searching for a nanny. The tidbit highlights the troubling treatment of nannies by their employers—a central theme to the work—namely, that the nanny should prioritize the children she cares for above all else, even over her own personal life. This quote shows the troubling demands for all-encompassing devotion despite the disposable nature of the nanny’s role.