Au Pair

Zuzana Búriková is a researcher at the Institute of Ethnology SAV, Slovakia and Lecturer at Masaryk University, Czech RepublicDaniel Miller is Professor of Anthropology at University College, London

“A great read and an intriguing academic study … Rich in content not only for anyone who thinks about employing or becoming an au pair, but also for everyone scientifically interested in an ethnography of this specific institution.”Anthropos "Pick up this book when you want a guilt-free escape from your day-to-day academic work. This is a vivid and engaging account of the life of Slovak au pairs in London. Written for the specialist and non-specialist alike, it offers great insight into the problems of intercultural communication, structured by the fundamental contradictions of the institution of the au pair."Journal of Intercultural Studies "Miller and Burikova's criticisms are all too real"The Times "A highly engaging read, which begs the question: why is more scholarly work not written in this way?"Social & Cultural Geography "A useful resource for all interested in both migration and gender studies. It challenges steretypes on the one hand of the au pair as an uneducated, poor and sexualised object and of host parents as cold, uncaring and exploitative on the other. It provides a huge amount of rich ethnographic data that challenge readers to think differently about family life, domestic tasks and the migration of young women."Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies "With its fine-grained ethnographic detail, skillfully presented in vivid prose, this book illuminates every aspect of the hopes, fantasies and frustrations that constitute the frequently troubled ties and misunderstandings between au pairs and their employers. A huge pleasure to read, Au Pair provides a definitive, indispensable text for addressing this increasingly prevalent facet of family life, with its own suggestions for improving the lives of both au pairs and the families in which they reside."Lynne Segal, Birkbeck College and author of Why Feminism? "A long overdue book that deals sensitively with the experiences of both au pairs and host families. It moves between individual stories and their social context to reveal the tensions and the potential of this unique relationship."Bridget Anderson, University of Oxford

• Acknowledgements viiPrologue 11 Why Not? 52 An Embarrassing Presence 323 The Hard Work and the Soft Touch 604 Sort of English 875 Bored in Beddlingham 1146 Men 1377 Out of Time 1568 Conclusion: Structure, Behaviour and Consequence 171Appendix: Academic Studies of Domestic Labour 184References 200Index 204