Chambermaid: A Novel

By Saira Rao

Book Overview

Many people since the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ have lived, and died with very little understanding of the value and purpose of human life; many more will live and die not knowing fully the purpose of this precious gift. Those who lived and died before the resurrection of Jesus Christ are excusable, because Jesus Christ spoke to them during the three days and three nights he spent in hell, and those who heard his voice "Were judged according to men in regard to the body, but live according to God in regard to the Spirit." But, Truly, these times of ignorance God overlooked, but now commands all men everywhere to repent. Human life transcends the physical realm. It is not a matter of, let us eat and drink, build beautiful houses, drive luxurious vehicles, go on cruises, taking a long vacation. Regardless how gratifying these things are to the flesh and good for the eyes to behold; the irony of truth is, they are all mundane, fleeting, and temporary. They don't last forever. Life is more purposeful than these fleeting moments of time, it is eternal, an eternal gift from God to fulfill an eternal purpose. When someone does not know the value and purpose of something, the natural tendency is to, misuse, abuse, neglect, discard, and eventually destroy it. The same is true with our human life. From all indications, the purpose of human life is to have everlasting dominion over the earth. Now since man is flesh and blood, mortal, and corruptible, he cannot fulfill God's ordained purpose if he remains in the flesh. Therefore, his work right now here in this mortal life is to create for himself with the help of God's Holy Spirit a body which is immortal, incorruptible, and everlasting, because flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. The important question for us today is, how can the perishable clothe itself with the imperishable, and the mortal with immortality? To help us attain this all important goal, God has given us all without exception something called Grace .It is stated that, "To each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ's gift" To enable us to fulfill our God ordained purpose in life, it is imperative that we gain a proper knowledge and understanding of what it really means to, know, love and serve God. These form important building blocks of the new spiritual temple. We are told that, "If any man builds on this foundation using gold, silver, costly stones, wood, hay or straw, his work will be shown for what it is, because the day will bring it to light. It will be revealed with fire, and the fire will test the quality of each man's work. If what he has built survives, he will receive his reward. If it is burned up, he will suffer loss; he himself will be saved, but only as one escaping through the flames" (1Corinthians 3:12-15). These three building blocks are really the main objective and purpose for the human life and can be defined as our Upward calling which is to have true fellowship with the Father and the Son by ascribing to the Lord the glory due to his name, bringing him an acceptable offering when appearing before him, worshiping him in the beauty of holiness, and taking delight in him. Our Inward calling is to love God by obeying his commandments, following the example of Jesus Christ, and having the nature of Christ to be formed in us. And our Outward Calling, is to serve the Lord by loving our neighbors as our selves, and demonstrate that love by being hospitable and using whatever gift/s or opportunities to the benefit of all. God's divine power has granted to us all things that pertains to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, that through these we may escape from the corruption that is in the world because of passion, and become partakers of the divine nature.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0802118496
• ISBN13: 9780802118493
• Release Date: July 2007
• Publisher: Grove Press
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 1.20 lbs.
• Dimensions: 9.5" x 1.3" x 6.5"

Customer Reviews

A Witty Beach Read

Chaimbermaid is a fictional account of a judicial clerk, Shelia Raj, and her experience at the Third Circuit Court of Appeals here in Philadelphia. A lot of the action takes place in Philadelphia restaurants, including such gems as Rouge, The Continental, Jones, Las Vegas Lounge and Ralph's. It's interesting to see the perspective of these restaurants from a character who is not a Philadelphia native. And Shelia's objectivity is refreshing. For example, Shelia, who hails from New York, is annoyed by the velvet rope elitism practiced at Rouge and is not a fan of The Continental's "Oriental Ginger Noodle Salad." Yet, she's grounded enough to appreciate the simple comforts of the mac-and-cheese and deviled eggs at Jones. The book has received a lot of attention due to its so-called scandalous, fly-on-the-wall perspective of what happens inside the chambers of a federal appeals court judge. This aspect of the book certainly is a draw, especially to us lawyer types, and does carry its share of the book's humor. But Rao's stories did not diminish my respect and reverence for the court. In the end, all judges are human beings. But Rao, in fact, demonstrates that it takes an exceptional kind of human being to be the effective judge that Judge Friedman is in Chambermaid. In addition, there's a lot more to Chambermaid than the gossipy goings-on behind chamber doors. For example, one of the key plot threads involves a high-profile death penalty case Shelia has been assigned. Death penalty jurisprudence can be complicated stuff (I know; I represented a death row inmate back in the day). But Rao not only manages to make death penalty jurisprudence approachable, she also makes it engaging. Yet, Chambermaid is still an escape. Rao's style is light, witty and entertaining. And her book is chock full of politics, love and other tumultuous happenings in the life of a young lawyer struggling for direction and identity. Chaimbermaid is the perfect beach read for anyone interested in a young professional's perspective on law, Center City or the Philadelphia dining scene.

Praise for Chambermaid

Chambermaid was the perfect summer vacation read. Saira Rao's witty portrayal of life inside one wacky, fictional judge's chambers was the right balance of wit, (relatively) light-hearted plot, well-developed characters, and some important commentary on the mysterious ways of the federal courts. Critics who harp on the protagonist's catty side or how the novel depicts a not altogether true look at the judiciary have totally missed the point: Rao wasn't channeling Woodward and Bernstein here in a legal-journalistic expose of the federal courts. Rather, this is a terrific first work of fiction by a talented young writer and lawyer who saw fit to have some fun at the expense of our legal system. I am looking forward to whatever her pen (her sword?) sees fit to attack next.

The Office meets Law & Order

Chambermaid is a creative caricature of many first professional jobs: weirdo co-workers, ego-maniacal bosses and on-the-job experiences that are nothing like the job description one applied for. As a bonus, the reader is treated to the narrator's experience as a young Indian woman in search of love while balancing her neuroses as a competitive recent law school grad. Read this book for what it is, a work of FICTION that draws on the real-life experiences of the author. As for whether Chambermaid accurately reflects clerking for a Federal Judge, I say, "Who cares, it's a novel!"

Clever, Witty, Fun Read

Like many of the reviewers here, I also enjoyed reading Chambermaid. Rao has a real eye for the absurdities of the legal system, and a sharp wit that elicits many laughs. The portrait of the hermetically sealed world of a judge's chambers is dead on, and there is even some non-legal-world fun to be had here, for example, a playful Thanksgiving family meal. I recommend buying and reading this book, and look forward to more books from Rao in the future!

A great vacation book

If your looking for a great book to take on your summer vacation, this is it! It was very funny and I found myself laughing out loud while reading it. I'm not a lawyer but I enjoyed the book for what it is - a fictional story about clerking for a judge.