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ellenmc07's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 stars
An okay, palette cleansing kind of book. The plot was a little slow and the main character wasn't my favourite, not by a long shot. The messages about care and the journeys we face though made this redeemable. An all around middle of the road experience.
An okay, palette cleansing kind of book. The plot was a little slow and the main character wasn't my favourite, not by a long shot. The messages about care and the journeys we face though made this redeemable. An all around middle of the road experience.
parrott1sm's review against another edition
4.0
This is one of the rare times that I'll say I enjoyed the movie more than the book! The book did go more in-depth on a few important issues, though. As someone who was a caregiver and close friend of a pair of siblings with MD, this book/movie had me laughing and crying like no other. I'll definitely be re-reading in the future when I need something really heartfelt.
carolpk's review against another edition
5.0
Thank you, thank you, Robin Beerbower for shouting out this title at the 4th Annual Librarian Shout 'n Share at Bookexpo 2012. I knew the minute I heard Robin pitch The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving by Jonathan Evison that I had to read this book. Robin's shout out was back in June and considering several other GoodReads friends rated it highly,what took me so long? I really don't know but don't make my mistake. Read this book!
Having read Evison's West of Here and liking it, I'm not certain I was quite prepared for The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving. I'm thinking more of the same but there is no comparison between the two other than plain good writing. It is heartening when an author can take a different direction and just get it right. If I could give The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving 10 stars I would. It's not always easy to explain why a book makes my best list but suffice it to say this one just did. I loved it.
Easy premise. Ben Benjamin has lost it all though early on you are not quite certain how or why. All you know is that he's down to his last bucks, takes a course as a caregiver and is interviewing for a job. Little does he know this client, Trev, 19 year old, suffering from muscular dystrophy, and also one royal pain in the you know what, will change his life. The relationship that develops between these two mismatched souls is something to read. Their constant banter, all I can think is guy speak, made me laugh, but I also kept the tissues nearby as there's serious stuff going on here too. These two guys, both searching for something, eventually set out on one heck of an American road trip. There are other characters of course, and all are brought vividly to life by Evison's expertise.
The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving is a story I won't soon forget and one I'll recommend to many. Excellent!
Having read Evison's West of Here and liking it, I'm not certain I was quite prepared for The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving. I'm thinking more of the same but there is no comparison between the two other than plain good writing. It is heartening when an author can take a different direction and just get it right. If I could give The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving 10 stars I would. It's not always easy to explain why a book makes my best list but suffice it to say this one just did. I loved it.
Easy premise. Ben Benjamin has lost it all though early on you are not quite certain how or why. All you know is that he's down to his last bucks, takes a course as a caregiver and is interviewing for a job. Little does he know this client, Trev, 19 year old, suffering from muscular dystrophy, and also one royal pain in the you know what, will change his life. The relationship that develops between these two mismatched souls is something to read. Their constant banter, all I can think is guy speak, made me laugh, but I also kept the tissues nearby as there's serious stuff going on here too. These two guys, both searching for something, eventually set out on one heck of an American road trip. There are other characters of course, and all are brought vividly to life by Evison's expertise.
The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving is a story I won't soon forget and one I'll recommend to many. Excellent!
machadofam8's review against another edition
4.0
Loved this. I will be checking out more by this author. Great characters, fun road trip.
gabbeebe's review against another edition
3.0
A quick read. The main character puts himself into awkward and disastrous situations that he handles in the most hilariously off the wall ways. The book also has a lot of heart and redemption, and who doesn't love a redemption story.
annie_explores's review against another edition
3.0
It was a great story in many ways, but I wanted more of the characters (the ones who are not main characters, but have more than a peripheral role, like the companions on the road trip) to have more substance. Also, some of the road trip seemed contrived, which clashed in an uncomfortable way with the very not-contrived, tragic nature of the narrator's history. Because both stories—past and present—were being told simultaneously, it was hard to reconcile the different tones and approaches.
mariesreads's review against another edition
2.0
I liked it okay. Fun redemptive road trip story, lots of great one-liners and sense of humor. I think my big problem was with the main character, Ben. Usually I really like unlikeable narrators, but this just didn't work for me. I think maybe because I got the feeling I was supposed to be on his side, liking him and rooting for him...but he was just too self-centered for that.
Still, I think that's just me and it's not a deal-breaker for the story at all. A lot of the humor comes from Ben not being the best all-around guy. And yet, he has his moments.
Still, I think that's just me and it's not a deal-breaker for the story at all. A lot of the humor comes from Ben not being the best all-around guy. And yet, he has his moments.
jesssalexander's review against another edition
1.0
I picked this up because some of the reviews had said it was funny, quirky, goofy, etc which would help me get through the sadness of the narrator's really depressing life. Plus Paul Rudd is in the movie version so I thought it was worth a go. Maybe it just wasn't my sense of humor. The jokes were crude and descriptions that I think were supposed to be funny came off as unnecessary hyperbole (ex: the roadside diner chimichanga that was gasping for breath in a grey gravy, or the motel restaurant cook that thought all young people were neo-nazis).
I understand Benjamin's not-so-subtle emotional journey of helping two kids (Trev and Dot) reconnect with their fathers after an accident killed his own two kids. And there were sweet moments, but overall this was super not enjoyable.
I understand Benjamin's not-so-subtle emotional journey of helping two kids (Trev and Dot) reconnect with their fathers after an accident killed his own two kids. And there were sweet moments, but overall this was super not enjoyable.
modeislodis's review against another edition
4.0
First and foremost, Evison's novel is funny. I thought Ben, Trev, and Dot were a wonderful tribe to follow across the West. The undercurrent of tenderness found throughout these pages helped me take the book seriously. Quick, easy, funny, contemplative. What's there to lose?
arielml's review against another edition
2.0
I'm trying to adjust my own personal yardstick for what the amount of stars means. In other words, this was more enjoyable than what I probably would have given two stars in the past. Since Goodreads says two stars is "it was ok," that's where this book should land for me.
The book was fine, occasionally cute or clever, mostly sort of cliched and predictable. The characters are the sad sack narrator who can't seem to get out of his own way after his life fell apart, the precocious kid with the tragic illness who draws the sad sack out of his downward spiral, and the quirky hitchhikers they meet on their literal and metaphorical journey towards enlightenment and personal growth. As someone who's cared for a chronically ill person, I didn't feel like this book had anything profound to say about the experience. It didn't live up to the expectations I had based on its relatively high rating. Although in some ways it's very different, if you're looking for a novel about the transformative bond that can grow between a patient and his paid caregiver, Jojo Moyes's "Me Before You" was much better.
The book was fine, occasionally cute or clever, mostly sort of cliched and predictable. The characters are the sad sack narrator who can't seem to get out of his own way after his life fell apart, the precocious kid with the tragic illness who draws the sad sack out of his downward spiral, and the quirky hitchhikers they meet on their literal and metaphorical journey towards enlightenment and personal growth. As someone who's cared for a chronically ill person, I didn't feel like this book had anything profound to say about the experience. It didn't live up to the expectations I had based on its relatively high rating. Although in some ways it's very different, if you're looking for a novel about the transformative bond that can grow between a patient and his paid caregiver, Jojo Moyes's "Me Before You" was much better.