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Nanny Nanny
Not yet published
Expected 17 Nov 26A single, 35-year-old career nanny decides to have a baby of her own in this incandescent debut novel unsettling traditional narratives about motherhood, gender, class, domestic violence, and the politics and labor of care.
After years of caring full-time for the children of the rich and the famous, our narrator has been struck, finally, with baby fever. Over a drink with sympathetic friends, she lists all the reasons why she wants to have a baby, beginning with a story about the intoxicating, abusive relationship with an ex-wife that she barely survived. She ponders how to fill the gaping void left in the wake of such horrific domestic violence. What’s the next most violent thing a woman can do to herself? she asks. Have a baby.
Soon, her story opens other doors to the past—the seemingly idyllic childhood she spent under her father’s roof; the mentorship, and judgment, of female writers whose children she has reared; and the man, her first love, who now seems to be offering her a second chance. Each unraveling thread reveals the complex tangle of thrill and pain, tradition and progress that has led her to this moment, this calling. Is it time for her to become a mother?
K Chiucarello’s stunningly original debut novel explores the brutality of gendered violence, including the gossip that polices women’s choices and the conventions that determine which women have the right to tell their story, and how. With wit, candor, and unprecedented nuance, Nanny Nanny upends every expectation of a book about motherhood, queering the biological clock and subverting narrative bounds.
After years of caring full-time for the children of the rich and the famous, our narrator has been struck, finally, with baby fever. Over a drink with sympathetic friends, she lists all the reasons why she wants to have a baby, beginning with a story about the intoxicating, abusive relationship with an ex-wife that she barely survived. She ponders how to fill the gaping void left in the wake of such horrific domestic violence. What’s the next most violent thing a woman can do to herself? she asks. Have a baby.
Soon, her story opens other doors to the past—the seemingly idyllic childhood she spent under her father’s roof; the mentorship, and judgment, of female writers whose children she has reared; and the man, her first love, who now seems to be offering her a second chance. Each unraveling thread reveals the complex tangle of thrill and pain, tradition and progress that has led her to this moment, this calling. Is it time for her to become a mother?
K Chiucarello’s stunningly original debut novel explores the brutality of gendered violence, including the gossip that polices women’s choices and the conventions that determine which women have the right to tell their story, and how. With wit, candor, and unprecedented nuance, Nanny Nanny upends every expectation of a book about motherhood, queering the biological clock and subverting narrative bounds.
272 pages, Hardcover
Expected publication November 17, 2026
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I liked this enough to make it through, as it had some genuinely interesting things to say about childcare— specifically, the act of caring for other people's children —as well as motherhood and human nature. There is also a very effective depiction of domestic violence and the trauma that grows out of it.
Unfortunately, though, the stream-of-consciousness style narrative felt disorganised and was often repetitive. We move between the past and present, which is fine, but after a while I felt like we were revisiting the same moments over and over without moving forward.
Unfortunately, though, the stream-of-consciousness style narrative felt disorganised and was often repetitive. We move between the past and present, which is fine, but after a while I felt like we were revisiting the same moments over and over without moving forward.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
As someone who has been a nanny nanny myself, as someone who has made a career in childcare even outside of nannying, K. Chiucarello spoke profoundly to my very soul through Nanny Nanny. There's an acute understanding of what it feels to care for someone else's child so intimately, what it feels to be called Mama by a child not your own, the complexities of loving the act of caring for others' children while simultaneously being aware that doing so fits right in with societal standards of womanhood. Nanny Nanny stands as a richly complex testament to what it means to be someone socialized as a woman, the expectations we're raised into, and the consequently mixed emotions and logic associated with desiring (or not desiring) a child of our own.
The prose itself captivated me. K. Chiucarello writes without apology, sensitive topics addressed boldly, both profound and precisely captured. Their writing rings of therapeautic work through the main character in their understanding of why things happened, in their empathy towards others who often are not afforded such analysis of how systems inform and encourage violence. At times, the prose becomes academic. And yet, it never feels unnatural, not when college and therapy and writing classes come into play in the narrative in direct correlation with the main character. We as readers can see why the main character speaks as they do, why this information is presented in such a literary fashion. This book toes the line of telling more than showing, but, to be honest, the precise candid way of writing spoke to the point at which the main character was in their own journey of understanding their past, present, and future. It's schematic analysis, but done in a way that feels natural to this character. My own mind works similarly, needing to know the why and how systems create perpetual systems of violence. This straight-forwardness was refreshing to read, and many of the statements when made clear instead of convoluted made me feel seen, heard, understood.
In form, Nanny Nanny spiraled from past to present to future, and that form replicated the way our mind remembers events in present situations and conversations. K. Chiucarello clearly thoroughly organized this book in a thoughtful and precise manner. At times, there was repetition, which could feel frustrating as it slowed the narrative and as it felt like the reader wasn't trusted to remember certain details (which lowered the rating of this book slightly for me down to 4.5 stars in actuality), but I can also see how this is meant to replicate natural flow in thought processes. Overall, I loved the form, the non-linear timeline, slowly discovering and trusted with bits and pieces of this character's life story.
I loved how richly complex this story stood. K. Chiucarello understands the duality of being human, how two things can be true at once, how nothing is ever truly black and white but an ever-shifting shade of grey. This book holds so human in its understanding of people, and I have to applaud K. Chiucarello for their understanding and literary exploration of human nature, desire, thought, and action, particularly in relation to caregiving, domestic violence, gender normatives, and systemic and generational harm.
Perhaps most admirable: K. Chiucarello refuses the "should", instead trasparently exploring flaws with compassionate empathy. We're given the ugly truth, and K. Chiucarello isn't afraid to lay out a brutal statement (truth or not), instead fully encapsulating the main character's truth no matter how messy or painful. We as readers, to a degree, stand as jury as we're given the full ugly story, and in the end (to complete this metaphor) we're meant to make our own judement on whether we believe the main character, if this one side of the story rings full truth. And, honestly, in the end, truth didn't seem to matter so much as how we as readers reach an understanding of the main character -- we relate, we understand, we empathize, and we love through it all. We will never know the other sides of the story, but we can relate to this character who was unafraid to lay out their truth even while knowing judgement would be occuring as the narrative unfolded, as story structures of this nature intend. Judgement is inevitable, but this story urges the reader to step back from judgement into an empathetic role, emblematic of a caregiver's necessity to be gentle and loving, to meet where someone is in the present now instead of judging for the choices they made in grey areas because learning is a neverending and human process. We as human are messy, we make mistakes, but we learn and grow and, ultimately, just do our very best with what we got, with what we feel is right at the moment, just as this main character did.
Nanny Nanny is real, raw, vulnerable, painful, and yet, ultimately healing in the compassionate caretaking K. Chiucarello applies through the medium of this book.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book!
The prose itself captivated me. K. Chiucarello writes without apology, sensitive topics addressed boldly, both profound and precisely captured. Their writing rings of therapeautic work through the main character in their understanding of why things happened, in their empathy towards others who often are not afforded such analysis of how systems inform and encourage violence. At times, the prose becomes academic. And yet, it never feels unnatural, not when college and therapy and writing classes come into play in the narrative in direct correlation with the main character. We as readers can see why the main character speaks as they do, why this information is presented in such a literary fashion. This book toes the line of telling more than showing, but, to be honest, the precise candid way of writing spoke to the point at which the main character was in their own journey of understanding their past, present, and future. It's schematic analysis, but done in a way that feels natural to this character. My own mind works similarly, needing to know the why and how systems create perpetual systems of violence. This straight-forwardness was refreshing to read, and many of the statements when made clear instead of convoluted made me feel seen, heard, understood.
In form, Nanny Nanny spiraled from past to present to future, and that form replicated the way our mind remembers events in present situations and conversations. K. Chiucarello clearly thoroughly organized this book in a thoughtful and precise manner. At times, there was repetition, which could feel frustrating as it slowed the narrative and as it felt like the reader wasn't trusted to remember certain details (which lowered the rating of this book slightly for me down to 4.5 stars in actuality), but I can also see how this is meant to replicate natural flow in thought processes. Overall, I loved the form, the non-linear timeline, slowly discovering and trusted with bits and pieces of this character's life story.
I loved how richly complex this story stood. K. Chiucarello understands the duality of being human, how two things can be true at once, how nothing is ever truly black and white but an ever-shifting shade of grey. This book holds so human in its understanding of people, and I have to applaud K. Chiucarello for their understanding and literary exploration of human nature, desire, thought, and action, particularly in relation to caregiving, domestic violence, gender normatives, and systemic and generational harm.
Perhaps most admirable: K. Chiucarello refuses the "should", instead trasparently exploring flaws with compassionate empathy. We're given the ugly truth, and K. Chiucarello isn't afraid to lay out a brutal statement (truth or not), instead fully encapsulating the main character's truth no matter how messy or painful. We as readers, to a degree, stand as jury as we're given the full ugly story, and in the end (to complete this metaphor) we're meant to make our own judement on whether we believe the main character, if this one side of the story rings full truth. And, honestly, in the end, truth didn't seem to matter so much as how we as readers reach an understanding of the main character -- we relate, we understand, we empathize, and we love through it all. We will never know the other sides of the story, but we can relate to this character who was unafraid to lay out their truth even while knowing judgement would be occuring as the narrative unfolded, as story structures of this nature intend. Judgement is inevitable, but this story urges the reader to step back from judgement into an empathetic role, emblematic of a caregiver's necessity to be gentle and loving, to meet where someone is in the present now instead of judging for the choices they made in grey areas because learning is a neverending and human process. We as human are messy, we make mistakes, but we learn and grow and, ultimately, just do our very best with what we got, with what we feel is right at the moment, just as this main character did.
Nanny Nanny is real, raw, vulnerable, painful, and yet, ultimately healing in the compassionate caretaking K. Chiucarello applies through the medium of this book.
Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC of this book!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Nanny Nanny by K. Chiucarello was absolutely stunning. It’s reflective and honest, tragic and hopeful. I can’t believe this beautiful book is a debut.
This is the story of a career Nanny, a Nanny Nanny. She reflects on the children she’s loved, her high school boyfriend, and her abusive ex-wife, all as she contemplates having a baby of her own.
This a non-linear story that unfolds in a way that feels so personal, it doesn’t even feel like fiction. I appreciated the honesty with which the domestic violence was described, though it was sad and disturbing.
I listened to Nanny Nanny on audio narrated by Hayden Bishop and it was so beautifully performed. Sometimes it can be hard to listen to disturbing scenes of violence but Bishop’s emotional performance was so respectful and well done.
Thank you so much to K. Chiucarello, NetGalley and Harper Audio Adult for the ALC. All opinions are my own.
This is the story of a career Nanny, a Nanny Nanny. She reflects on the children she’s loved, her high school boyfriend, and her abusive ex-wife, all as she contemplates having a baby of her own.
This a non-linear story that unfolds in a way that feels so personal, it doesn’t even feel like fiction. I appreciated the honesty with which the domestic violence was described, though it was sad and disturbing.
I listened to Nanny Nanny on audio narrated by Hayden Bishop and it was so beautifully performed. Sometimes it can be hard to listen to disturbing scenes of violence but Bishop’s emotional performance was so respectful and well done.
Thank you so much to K. Chiucarello, NetGalley and Harper Audio Adult for the ALC. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I found this book to be incredibly repetitive. The prose itself was good, but I felt like I was re-reading the same chapter over and over again. Maybe I simply didn’t get it? Or I can’t relate at all? I can definitely see how this would speak to some, but it wasn’t for me.
I found this book to be incredibly repetitive. The prose itself was good, but I felt like I was re-reading the same chapter over and over again. Maybe I simply didn’t get it? Or I can’t relate at all? I can definitely see how this would speak to some, but it wasn’t for me.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
What strikes me most about this book was how it wove between the past and present in a way that felt human. The stream-of-consciousness style of writing was easily my favorite part of the novel and really amplified life and its often cyclical nature, particularly as it pertains to trauma. Tumultuous is one word to describe this story, but I believe there is a lot of love here too.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided me with an eARC.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided me with an eARC.
Review of advance copy
The structure of this did not work for me & I also think it was marketed slightly misleadingly
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
One of the best books I've read all year
August 20, 2026
A masterclass in non-linear plot. If you don’t like books that jump around in time, this isn’t for you, but for everyone else, it’s nearly perfect.
As a mother who has relied heavily on another woman to help raise my child, I found it really thought provoking to read the candid perspective of a nanny. But more than being just a book about a woman in her 30s considering becoming a parent while parenting other people’s children, it is a book about parenting a partner and the ways one can end up abandoning all care of themselves in an abusive situation they are essentially trying to care their way better. Perhaps the hardest to read and most important part of the book is when the narrator is navigating the legal process of suing her ex using a free court appointed attorney. It highlights the way our domestic violence system wholly fails DV survivors, particularly women, and particularly those in a relationship with another woman.
In short, this book is really good, and I highly recommend it. I am looking forward to seeing its success upon publication this fall.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
As a mother who has relied heavily on another woman to help raise my child, I found it really thought provoking to read the candid perspective of a nanny. But more than being just a book about a woman in her 30s considering becoming a parent while parenting other people’s children, it is a book about parenting a partner and the ways one can end up abandoning all care of themselves in an abusive situation they are essentially trying to care their way better. Perhaps the hardest to read and most important part of the book is when the narrator is navigating the legal process of suing her ex using a free court appointed attorney. It highlights the way our domestic violence system wholly fails DV survivors, particularly women, and particularly those in a relationship with another woman.
In short, this book is really good, and I highly recommend it. I am looking forward to seeing its success upon publication this fall.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided me with an eARC in exchange for my honest review.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This review comes from a gifted copy of an E-Advance Reader Copy from NetGalley, all opinions are my own.
Nanny Nanny was simply fantastic. Chiucarello uses such incredible prose and a writing style that completely engulfs the reader. I simply could not stop reading this heartbreaking, stunning story and will be recommending it to everyone I know.
The main character depicts her life events while telling her friends about what has been happening to her, detailing her work as a nanny, her abusive relationship with a woman named Lucia, and her desire to have a baby of her own, preferably with her lifelong, on and off lover, Michael. Nanny Nanny explores the experience of a woman and her navigation through traumatic events and her accounts of domestic abuse, rape, loss of a sibling, rocky parental relationships, and more. The transformative story puts you right in the narrator's stream of consciousness, and the emotions I felt right along with her were entirely consuming.
I loved the bisexual representation, and enjoyed how accurately her romantic experience was depicted as well. Oftentimes I see queer characters written in a way that marks their identity as something the character is, and not experiences. This book excellently showed the dynamic between the main character and her romantic partners in a realistic manner that added to the flow of the story perfectly. There were a few gory scenes that I felt did so much to add to the story too, adding violence in a way that expands the reader's perspective and what the narrator was feeling beyond what was inflicted by Lucia.
As a professional who works with domestic violence victims on a daily basis, this portrayal was incredibly accurate, one of the best I have ever seen. The heartbreaking reality of a victim being put down by the criminal justice system was so excellently embedded in this story. Every detail, from the police response, the failed attempts to leave, the manipulation from the abuser - it was all spot on. It brought me to tears with how powerful and specific the main character's story was developed. One parallel that absolutely floored me was the comparison to the victim pacifying, NANNYING, her abusive partner and trying to navigate her explosive violence in the same way she cared for the children in her life. It was so brilliant, so poignant, I simply devoured it. It hit me hard in the chest and solidified this book as a true five star read.
Nanny Nanny also asks a lot of thought provoking questions about womanhood, motherhood, and identity. One that truly stood out was "is motherhood a solo identity? Can it be shared? This examination lets the reader take a look into the realities of navigating the world as a woman, the dark look into coming of age themes and exploring what it means to exist in the throes of a traumatized state.
In summary, I will absolutely be pre-ordering this book and throwing it in everyone's face who will listen to me, because this book truly, truly deserves its flowers and more.
Nanny Nanny was simply fantastic. Chiucarello uses such incredible prose and a writing style that completely engulfs the reader. I simply could not stop reading this heartbreaking, stunning story and will be recommending it to everyone I know.
The main character depicts her life events while telling her friends about what has been happening to her, detailing her work as a nanny, her abusive relationship with a woman named Lucia, and her desire to have a baby of her own, preferably with her lifelong, on and off lover, Michael. Nanny Nanny explores the experience of a woman and her navigation through traumatic events and her accounts of domestic abuse, rape, loss of a sibling, rocky parental relationships, and more. The transformative story puts you right in the narrator's stream of consciousness, and the emotions I felt right along with her were entirely consuming.
I loved the bisexual representation, and enjoyed how accurately her romantic experience was depicted as well. Oftentimes I see queer characters written in a way that marks their identity as something the character is, and not experiences. This book excellently showed the dynamic between the main character and her romantic partners in a realistic manner that added to the flow of the story perfectly. There were a few gory scenes that I felt did so much to add to the story too, adding violence in a way that expands the reader's perspective and what the narrator was feeling beyond what was inflicted by Lucia.
As a professional who works with domestic violence victims on a daily basis, this portrayal was incredibly accurate, one of the best I have ever seen. The heartbreaking reality of a victim being put down by the criminal justice system was so excellently embedded in this story. Every detail, from the police response, the failed attempts to leave, the manipulation from the abuser - it was all spot on. It brought me to tears with how powerful and specific the main character's story was developed. One parallel that absolutely floored me was the comparison to the victim pacifying, NANNYING, her abusive partner and trying to navigate her explosive violence in the same way she cared for the children in her life. It was so brilliant, so poignant, I simply devoured it. It hit me hard in the chest and solidified this book as a true five star read.
Nanny Nanny also asks a lot of thought provoking questions about womanhood, motherhood, and identity. One that truly stood out was "is motherhood a solo identity? Can it be shared? This examination lets the reader take a look into the realities of navigating the world as a woman, the dark look into coming of age themes and exploring what it means to exist in the throes of a traumatized state.
In summary, I will absolutely be pre-ordering this book and throwing it in everyone's face who will listen to me, because this book truly, truly deserves its flowers and more.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
This was honestly a really hard audiobook for me to get through, but not because I didn’t like it. Some of what the character goes through was just incredibly difficult to listen to. There were so many moments where I was thinking about how someone can end up in a relationship like this and how easy it can be for the signs of abuse to get overlooked or explained away.
As a lesbian who has never experienced physical harm in a relationship, this book was especially eye-opening for me. It made me realize how much I take for granted when it comes to feeling safe with a partner and how different someone else’s experience can be behind closed doors. It also made me think more about the warning signs of domestic violence and how abuse isn’t always as obvious as people might think.
The audiobook really brought all of that home for me. I found myself uncomfortable, frustrated, heartbroken, and sometimes just wanting to reach through the story and help her. It was heavy, but I think that’s exactly why it affected me as much as it did.
This one definitely made me think. I finished it with a much better understanding of how complicated abusive relationships can be, and I’m glad I listened to it even when it was difficult.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance audiobook. All opinions are my own.
As a lesbian who has never experienced physical harm in a relationship, this book was especially eye-opening for me. It made me realize how much I take for granted when it comes to feeling safe with a partner and how different someone else’s experience can be behind closed doors. It also made me think more about the warning signs of domestic violence and how abuse isn’t always as obvious as people might think.
The audiobook really brought all of that home for me. I found myself uncomfortable, frustrated, heartbroken, and sometimes just wanting to reach through the story and help her. It was heavy, but I think that’s exactly why it affected me as much as it did.
This one definitely made me think. I finished it with a much better understanding of how complicated abusive relationships can be, and I’m glad I listened to it even when it was difficult.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the advance audiobook. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Nanny Nanny completely won me over with its stream-of-consciousness style. It's messy, all over the place, jumping from story to story in a way that felt so genuinely human; and somehow that made me feel like I really knew the narrator, more than a lot of tidier, more linear narratives manage. She's a career nanny who's spent years caring for other people's kids, now sitting with her own baby fever while unpacking the abusive relationship with her ex that she's still working through, and the structure mirrors that headspace perfectly - you get her in fragments, the way a person actually thinks.
What really made it for me was how random little details from her past would just surface out of nowhere, like finding out she used to work at Disney (right at the end!), with no big lead-up or explanation. It felt so true to how people actually talk about their own lives; we don't info-dump our histories, things just come up when they come up. At its core this is a book about surviving abuse, wrestling with whether she wants a child but also that those two things have made her analyse her whole past, her relationship with her parents in particular, and it handles this with so much nuance. Loved this one.
What really made it for me was how random little details from her past would just surface out of nowhere, like finding out she used to work at Disney (right at the end!), with no big lead-up or explanation. It felt so true to how people actually talk about their own lives; we don't info-dump our histories, things just come up when they come up. At its core this is a book about surviving abuse, wrestling with whether she wants a child but also that those two things have made her analyse her whole past, her relationship with her parents in particular, and it handles this with so much nuance. Loved this one.
October 6, 2026
This ambitious debut novel plays with structure and resists definition. It’s a frame narrative, with the setup of our narrator telling a story to friends at the bar: the domestic violence she experienced at the hands of her ex-wife. There is some slippage between what is told aloud and what the narrator is remembering; I thought the choice to elide any quotation marks for dialogue allowed for multiple interpretations which was cool. I’m so curious how close the character of the narrator is to the biography of the author, who I wasn’t familiar with before I picked up the ARC from work. The themes felt intensely personal to the narrator, and they write against taboos when it comes to the subject of intimate partner violence. Sometimes the reading experience was brutal, a bit triggering, but there is catharsis too. And these themes are on my mind lately anyways, so I really appreciated how the book made me look at my past- and my own role in it- differently. Many thanks to Ecco/HarperCollins for the ARC; available November 2026!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I feel like maybe I’m the only person who found parts of this book surprisingly bleak? No one else seems particularly alarmed…
There was definitely more violence than I was expecting. I also fully accept that I might just be more sensitive to this particular kind of thing than the average reader.
That being said, I really liked the nanny perspective. There’s something inherently interesting about being so intimately involved in another family’s life while also technically being an employee, and I thought the book did a really good job with that strange in-between position.
The writing itself was actually very good…. The plot was surprisingly jumpy and not particularly straightforward, but I think it worked well for this book
Overall, I liked it, and I want to read more from K. Chiucarello
Thank you netgalley! & HarperAudio Adult for the advance copy so I could provide a review!
There was definitely more violence than I was expecting. I also fully accept that I might just be more sensitive to this particular kind of thing than the average reader.
That being said, I really liked the nanny perspective. There’s something inherently interesting about being so intimately involved in another family’s life while also technically being an employee, and I thought the book did a really good job with that strange in-between position.
The writing itself was actually very good…. The plot was surprisingly jumpy and not particularly straightforward, but I think it worked well for this book
Overall, I liked it, and I want to read more from K. Chiucarello
Thank you netgalley! & HarperAudio Adult for the advance copy so I could provide a review!
Review of advance copy received from Author
How can I capture all of my thoughts about this powerful novel?? From the jump, Nanny Nanny challenges the reader to hold many truths together. The story's thoughtful structure is nonlinear, sometimes circular, reflecting the disorienting experience of wading through the deluge that is the days, months, years that follow the end of an abusive relationship. As a survivor myself, this visceral and relatable story of a queer woman trying desperately to make sense of it all is something I have needed to see more of on bookshelves. It's mind-blowing to me that since Carmen Maria Machado's 2019 memoir In The Dream House, to my knowledge, there hasn't been a book that takes on the 'unspeakable' truth of sapphic DV despite its prevalence in our community. I could go on and on!!! I loved this book. It's brave, it's challenging, it's easy to fall into the slip stream of the prose, and it's desperately needed.
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
Best friends promise to have a baby together if they have not found their perfect partner at 35. Now, at 35 after surviving an abusive marriage to a violent woman and after years of caring for other people's children, she wants him to make good on his promise. Our nanny goes back into her past reliving the good, bad and the ugly trying to convince herself that she is ready for motherhood. The mothers who trusted her with their children would take her back in a heartbeat, hopefully her ex is out of the picture forever and it looks like motherhood would be the best thing for her. This is a deep dive into how we define motherhood, that social dilemma that dictates women should become mothers and the scars we carry from the wrong relationships. A slim novel that packs a punch.
My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.
My thanks to the publisher for the advance copy.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
I would describe the novel Nanny Nanny by K. Chiucarello as chaotic. Its writing style feels disjointed and is written in a non-linear format that didn’t work well for me.
Although I appreciated the story, the prose seemed distracting and off-putting. I experienced a similar reaction to All Fours by Miranda July a few years ago. At times, the author appeared more intent on delivering a “shocking” narrative than a strong one.
Despite this, I wouldn't recommend the book. If it had not been relatively brief at 272 pages, I might not have finished it.
A special thanks to the publisher for the advanced copy. And to any fellow readers who might be interested and want to prove me wrong, this novel releases on November 17, 2026.
Although I appreciated the story, the prose seemed distracting and off-putting. I experienced a similar reaction to All Fours by Miranda July a few years ago. At times, the author appeared more intent on delivering a “shocking” narrative than a strong one.
Despite this, I wouldn't recommend the book. If it had not been relatively brief at 272 pages, I might not have finished it.
A special thanks to the publisher for the advanced copy. And to any fellow readers who might be interested and want to prove me wrong, this novel releases on November 17, 2026.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This book was heavy. When we get more into the abuse that the FMC survived, it becomes increasingly uncomfortable and heartbreaking.
I kept reading, just wanting to know that by the end, our FMC is okay.
The story itself, had me pretty hooked.
Unfortunately, I felt pretty lukewarm about the actual writing. There is a part of me that enjoyed it, and I think the nonlinear story telling only makes sense with our FMC. However, I did find the writing a little too disorienting and a bit repetitive at times.
The writing style of this book definitely makes this a book that isn't for everyone. But if you're willing to give it a try, I do think that it's a story worth reading.
I kept reading, just wanting to know that by the end, our FMC is okay.
The story itself, had me pretty hooked.
Unfortunately, I felt pretty lukewarm about the actual writing. There is a part of me that enjoyed it, and I think the nonlinear story telling only makes sense with our FMC. However, I did find the writing a little too disorienting and a bit repetitive at times.
The writing style of this book definitely makes this a book that isn't for everyone. But if you're willing to give it a try, I do think that it's a story worth reading.
August 28, 2026
**Thank you to the publisher and author for an advanced copy for review. My opinions are my own.**
Nanny Nanny is at times piercingly violent and at times surprisingly tender. I felt like I needed to read parts of it squinting through my fingers because the domestic abuse felt so raw and shocking and real. But the beautiful and tender ruminations on care work and a woman learning to care for herself made up for every harsh part. Told in conversations and flashbacks, this story of a woman overcoming violence through care and stubborn truth telling had me moving bodily through anxiety and into calm. A really beautiful debut.
Nanny Nanny is at times piercingly violent and at times surprisingly tender. I felt like I needed to read parts of it squinting through my fingers because the domestic abuse felt so raw and shocking and real. But the beautiful and tender ruminations on care work and a woman learning to care for herself made up for every harsh part. Told in conversations and flashbacks, this story of a woman overcoming violence through care and stubborn truth telling had me moving bodily through anxiety and into calm. A really beautiful debut.
August 30, 2026
A beautifully written story with gorgeous prose. This was a joy to read, it was a slow burn with focus on the narrator’s life, trauma, and previous relationships, with a glimmer of hope embedded throughout. I enjoyed the writing style a lot, it was soft and inviting and made reading even the abuse scenes, a little easier. A fantastic book that covers surviving abuse and coming out the other end, even if it means a peaceful life just for yourself. Really gorgeous storytelling.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for kindly providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. #NannyNanny #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for kindly providing an ARC in exchange for an honest review. #NannyNanny #NetGalley. All opinions are my own.
Review of advance copy
Nanny Nanny sounds like a thought-provoking and emotionally intense novel about motherhood, trauma, and the complicated choices women face. The narrator’s experience as a career nanny adds an interesting perspective to her desire to have a child of her own.
I’m especially drawn to how the story explores domestic violence, identity, and society’s expectations of women. It promises to be an honest, bold, and nuanced look at the difference between caring for others and deciding what you truly want for yourself.
Overall, this sounds like a compelling read for anyone who enjoys literary fiction with complex characters and meaningful themes.
I’m especially drawn to how the story explores domestic violence, identity, and society’s expectations of women. It promises to be an honest, bold, and nuanced look at the difference between caring for others and deciding what you truly want for yourself.
Overall, this sounds like a compelling read for anyone who enjoys literary fiction with complex characters and meaningful themes.
Review of advance copy
I received an ARC, so this review may not be a reflection of the published book.
But I really enjoyed reading this. It was messy, it was complicated, the cover didn’t at all convey what the book was about. Every chapter or so it gives information that recontextualizes relationships and change my understanding of things. People enter and leave the narrative often, everything is out of order, and it all feels very real. This is how stories are, this is how getting to know people goes a lot of the time. A sad, sweet book about abuse and loving other people when it’s hard to love yourself.
But I really enjoyed reading this. It was messy, it was complicated, the cover didn’t at all convey what the book was about. Every chapter or so it gives information that recontextualizes relationships and change my understanding of things. People enter and leave the narrative often, everything is out of order, and it all feels very real. This is how stories are, this is how getting to know people goes a lot of the time. A sad, sweet book about abuse and loving other people when it’s hard to love yourself.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Nanny Nanny was a bit of a surprise — went into this completely blind, expecting a story about the realities of career caregiving for the wealthy elite in NYC and found myself totally engaged in an intense novella on female spousal abuse that read less like trauma porn and more like an exploration/recollection of what it’s like to be a natural-born caregiver who prioritizes everyone else’s comfort while neglecting your own.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
thank you to netgalley and the publisher for the ARC.
August 13, 2026
Nanny, Nanny by K Chiucarello was such an intriguing read when it comes to the idea of complex family dynamics and the weight of the choices we make due to the heaviness of the experiences we may face. There were moments of reflection in this book that allow you to experience anxiety, fear, and heartbreak along with the main character. I loved how engrossing this story was due to the very raw and real writing. Thank you so much to NetGalley and Ecco for the ARC!
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
At first, I was caught up waiting for our protagonist to declare they’re going to be a single mother by choice and get on with it…but then I got engrossed in the story we did have: the meandering memories and reflections that led them to that choice. While plot light, Nanny Nanny more than makes up with it on reflection on caretaking, DV, and complex family relationships.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Reading this was a good time. The engaging writing grips you from the first page. The tone is playful and witty and also nerve racking at times. I liked the narrator. She was relatable in some ways, and I also worried for her and the decisions she made.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.
August 30, 2026
Nanny Nanny is not going to be a book for everyone. Chiucarello seems to toe the line between fiction and nonfiction, distorting time and revealing truths one layer at a time. I was riveted by the nonlinear storytelling, waiting to see what fresh horror the narrator would next unearth. Nanny Nanny interrogates the violence of caregiving, the prospect of ownership that is so tangled up in the concept of mothering.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC!
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
This book will need a strong trigger warning for domestic violence. There are a couple of places that dont make sense, like they drive in the cemetery and then act like they didnt move, she just gets right into her own car.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
August 20, 2026
This is a really well done debut novel about a woman who's been a nanny for the last while of her life, and her decision that she now also wants a baby. We get a lot of her interiority, especially as a childhood love comes back on the scene, and she works through her abusive first marriage to her wife, while also wrestling with why she wants a baby. Very stream of consciousness. Enjoyed this a great deal.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Well I am pissed. There was so much potential and then I was left with nothing. It was good and then at 75% it just was stagent and I realized there was no further movement in the narrative. So much build up for a giant let down.
Review of advance copy received from Goodreads Giveaways
This book was fantastic. Loved how it was so real, raw, vulnerable, painful, and yet healing. Wanted so much for the main character would have left the abusive relationship long ago and went back to her first love.
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