“Booker’s close readings are compelling, and her treatment of wide-ranging philosophical, political, and economic theory demonstrates a firm background knowledge of the intellectual contexts in which these works were created. Booker’s work is a helpful contribution to existing scholarship about servants and should be especially useful to those interested in cultural studies, economics, and ethics.”

New Perspectives on the Eighteenth Century

Booker condenses a wealth of knowledge into one slim volume, and the ambitious scope of the broad timespan announced in the title is fulfilled, resulting in a well-informed snapshot of textual representations two-hundred-year period. It is rare to find in a single book material that is useful for scholars of both the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. I came away from this text wanting to interrogate the ulterior motivations for the depiction of every servant in fiction (and drama), and this is something to be thankful for.

Eighteenth-Century Fiction

As a new entry into this undertreated line of critical inquiry, Booker’s 2018 monograph represents a generative step forward. Well researched, accessible, and keenly incisive, Booker interweaves cultural critique and literary interpretation in an expressly cogent and provocative read. . . . I find Menials a truly valuable and original contribution to the field. Kristina Booker is a fine writer and scholar, and her book should spark fresh conversations, both in print and in the classroom, to the profit of specialists and students alike.

Eighteenth Century Intelligencer