It seemed like a collection of summarized descriptions, examples of things like multiple course menus for fancy dinner parties or household servants' daily work schedules, and anecdotes from former domestic service workers that are quoted from other books. Not really a lot of original material but it makes a great reference, pretty short and to the point.
I couldn't tell if the author's sense of humor was shining through in some parts or if it was just bad examples of hyperbole.
Note to self: potential research source for NaNoWriMo.