Official Review: Trust me, I’m a care worker

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 09:12

gkgurley wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 12:30 The quote you mentioned about a day never going as planned is absolutely true. I'm a caregiver for people on the lower functioning end of the Autism Spectrum, and it is hard work. I look forward to reading more insights in this book.

I hope you enjoy the book, and thank you for the work you do! It can’t be easy, but I hope you know how important it is.

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 09:24

melissy370 wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 12:47 This is an entertaining and enlightening collection of stories that show how care giving is a meaningful, but sometimes, stressful career. Interestingly enough, I used to do a job very similar to what the author describes in his book, so I can relate a great deal to what he experienced. The downside of this particular book is the break up of the chapters were oddly done. The number for a new chapter would be in the middle of a story.

I agree about the chapter breaks. It was odd, but thankfully didn’t take away from my enjoyment of the book. Thanks for your feedback!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 09:27

Traci24 wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 12:47 I enjoyed your review of this book. I have over 12 years in the field and the feel of this book is familiar. There are days of getting cussed out and beat up (both emotionally and physically); however, there's also the days where a client recalls their fondest memories and it's a walk through history. I will be taking a look at this book. Once again, nice job.

I hope you enjoy the book, and I appreciate the work you do. It’s definitely demanding, both emotionally and physically. Thank you for your feedback!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 09:30

Catatonic_Turtle wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 13:19 As someone who is new to the onlinebookclub, I found this review to be extremely informative and a model for how I hope to write in the future. I love how you connected your personal experiences to the book that you were reading, it made the topic a lot more palpable and spoke to the fact that there is an entire community of health care workers out there who can identify, laugh, and gain knowledge from both the writer and his experiences. All in all great review, nice book, and congratulations to Christopher Bulteel for winning BOTD.

Thanks so much for your kind words, and welcome to the community!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:06

Phoenix-wrising wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 13:42 When I had surgery on my dominant arm, I needed a professional caretaker. I drove her nuts! Although I had my mental faculties, I still regressed to childish demands. One afternoon I asked her why she put up with me. Wearing a big grin, she looked me in the eyes and replied, “well, it’s not for the money.” Now I am a caretaker and have learned to live in the moment and find the humor in the littlest of things. Christina’s review was the selling point; I just bought a copy of the book.

Thanks for the work you do! I hope you enjoy the book!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:21

Sushan wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 14:35 Being in the health care sector and military both, simultaneously for 5 years, I agree to the point that we are being underpaid for what we do. A good, descriptive and a honest review, which gives a fully detailed idea about the book and an urge to read it. The book does not belongs to my palatable genre list, yet, I am going to give a try. Thank you for the review

I hope you enjoy the book. Thanks for all you do, not only in the health care sector, but also for your service in the military.

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:24

jedreid wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 14:35 great review as always! i am one of those who enjoy reading personal stories and anecdotes especially ones that focus on positivity that's why i have this book on my TBR list. i love its sample and was looking forward to reading its entirety!

Thank you, and I hope you enjoy the book!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:26

Chill01 wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 14:44 As a retired care worker, I can very much relate to the topic of this book. I'm so glad you found the book upbeat and fun. I can imagine the anecdotes the writer had with his care worker experiences. I thought the story you set as an example of the broken hoist the late assists and the power outage really set up the book for readers. Thank you for this nice review.

Thank you for the feedback, and also for your previous work as a care worker!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:39

tarafarah7 wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 15:06 Today's #BOTD sounds like a great read! It really takes a special someone to fulfill these duties and find the beauty (and humor!) in the moments that life throws our way. The author sounds like a wonderful individual, and I am looking forward to hearing his stories and learning about his patients! Great job on your review...thank you!

One more thing...I love that you included the quote at the end! Everything you said about it is so true. I'm a teacher, and it describes my day perfectly. Keeping a positive attitude lightens the load and reminds us that it'll all be okay at the end of the day.

Thank you! I can see how the quote would be relatable to you as a teacher.

I have a son with ADHD, and another with speech delay and other possible developmental delays. Believe me, good teachers are amazing individuals, and I hope you know how important your role is!

tarafarah7 · Post by **tarafarah7** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:45

Thank you! So kind of you to say! ☺❤

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 10:51

Miriam Molina wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 15:50 I can very well relate to the author's experiences. Though not a professional careworker, I care for my folks fulltime. My mother had stroke-induced dementia and proceeded to acquire a host of other ailments until she passed away in 2016. Now it's my dad's turn to suffer old-age dementia; he is 90.

The situations described in the book may seem humorous in hindsight, but the stress of the moment can sometimes be overwhelming. The elderly and others enfeebled by sickness need our love, care, and attention. May we have the patience and generosity to accomplish that challenging task.

Thanks, Christina Rose! I only wish the book can undergo better editing, so the message can be delivered all the better.

The stress of the moment can very much be overwhelming, that is so true. Especially for those with more of an emotional involvement, such as family members. I commend you for looking after your parents. Having witnessed cases of those with family around and those without, I can say it truly makes a difference.
While the lack of editing didn’t keep me from enjoying what I read, I do think better editing may attract more readers. Thank you for your feedback!

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 11:02

kdawes17 wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 17:42 When i read this book it hit close to home because it reminds me of my mother and she's been at her job for 16 years and her patients have grown to love her. She smile even when down but she keeps pushing and when she has days off ,When she comes back her patients let her know that she was missed and glad to see her.

Your mother sounds a lot like mine when it comes to working in this field. My mom is the type to go above and beyond to help someone out. The residents and family members become friends, and you can just really tell how much my mom cares, and how well she is liked. Your mom sounds amazing

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 12 Jun 2018, 11:10

FictionLover wrote: ↑11 Jun 2018, 17:46 I got a lot out of your review. I'm not sure I could continue to read these sad stories about people with dementia.

Also, I am becoming very confused about how these reviews are written. The sample book I read was filled with errors, like no capitalization, extra spaces and more than once the chapter changed in the middle of a sentence.

While I enjoyed Mr. Bulteel's spirit and his remembrance of the seniors he helped, I don't understand how this could be a 4 star review. In my opinion, your review was better organized than his first three chapters.

I completely understand what you’re saying. The reason I didn’t let the errors effect my rating, was because I thought it added to the diary-type appeal. The chapter breaks were highly unusual, and in odd places, but I think I just got used to it the more I read. Because of how much I enjoyed the book, I couldn’t rate it lower than I did. However, I did mention the errors, because I still felt it was important to point out.

FictionLover · Post by **FictionLover** » 12 Jun 2018, 18:55

I see. I thought it was a hard and fast rule.

Christina Rose · Post by **Christina Rose** » 15 Jun 2018, 13:55

FictionLover wrote: ↑12 Jun 2018, 18:55 I see. I thought it was a hard and fast rule.

If there are more than a certain number of errors, then you cannot rate the book a 4, you’re right. I’ve previously rated books a 3 due to the number of errors, even though the content was worthy of a 4. I wonder sometimes if errors vary depending on the review copy downloaded. On paper, we would all see the same format and mistakes, but I don’t know if that is the case with ebooks.