The Housemaid's Daughter flew far beyond any of my expectations. Set during the heart of apartheid in South Africa, so much happened that I'm not sure how to begin. Ada, the housemaid's daughter, was born and raised in the white household that her mother worked for - living in a small hut in the back. As she grew, it was apparent that she was a bright girl, and the Madam of the house, Cathleen, wanted to give her the best opportunites she could. The Master of the house, Edward, who grew up in South Africa and understood the racial diferences better, would hear none of it - Ada could not go to the best school - blacks just didn't do that sort of thing. So Cathleen begins to teach Ada herself. Ada grows up as a part of Cathleen's family alongside Cathleen's son Phil and Rose. Without giving too much away - we get get to see Ada's journey from a pampered black maid, to an outcast in both black and white society - to being a rallying cry for change. Cathleen will have many difficult choices to make. Theirs is a house divided along political and racial lines, with half supporting equality and half thinking the separation is best. Watching the struggles South Aftrica saw through this point of view made it a lot more personal. The love of a family - even if they were not all blood - was all that held this group together at times. While the story is told from Ada's side, Cathleen takes a very major role and is, at times, the strong character holding it all together. "Startling and thought-provoking" isn't strong enough to describe the story in these pages. This is one that will remain on my best of the best shelf, read over and over again through the years. There are messages in the words that the world still needs to hear today. *This book was received in exchange for an honest review* - See more at: http://hotofftheshelves.blogspot.com/2013/12/review-housemaids-daughter-by-barbara.html#sthash.QlSxJDnE.dpuf