Henry James never uses one word where he can use ten, and never uses ten where he can use a hundred. I think if this book were a hundred pages shorter, it would be much more effective. That being said, it's a powerful piece of work. Maisie is the child of emotionally abusive and neglectful parents, who use her as a bargaining chip and a way to inflict harm on one another. Gradually, they lose interest in her entirely, and she is left to the care of step-parents and governesses, none of whom have any real ability to care for her emotionally, or even educate her. The truths that Maisie is privy to feel relatively harmless to modern readers -- except the truth that her parents do not love her -- and her moral shortcomings do not seem all that immoral. But the theme of children being neglected and forced to witness actions and emotions unsuitable for their years is very relevant, as is the idea of children being the focal point of parental abuse. Thematically, this book feels timeless and apt to our current society, though James' prose style does make it hard to access.