·
What
is your book about?
Do
you have a family member who drives you crazy? Well, in my book there are two
such people. The elderly father-in-law with a hidden history of schizophrenia
and a number of other health issues, including dementia and Parkinson’s
disease, and his daughter-in-law who is crazy enough to readily agree to be his
caregiver thinking he will thrive in her care. While she does all she can to
save him from himself, he is busy trying to convince everyone she’s the cause
of all his problems.
·
What
inspired you to write this particular story (and/or series)?
Every
26 minutes another person is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease in the country.
Add in the many other forms of dementia and the numbers are staggering. I wrote this book in response to caregivers I
met, or commented on my blog, who said they hoped someone would write a book
that showed what it’s really like.
·
Are
your characters in the book based on anyone you know?
All the characters in
this book are based on people I know. Rodger was my father-in-law and I was his
imperfect caregiver for seven years. The names of all the medical personnel
have been changed as have the names of the sheriff’s deputies portrayed.
Readers will decide if I did it to protect the innocent or the guilty.
·
More
people read novels than nonfiction. Would this book appeal to them?
I
enjoy writing creative nonfiction.
Creative nonfiction portrays a true story using the same tools used in
writing fiction. That means I tell the story through dialogue, point of view
and setting. Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver reads like a novel. I hope
it will be read and enjoyed by caregivers and those who may become caregivers
but also by women and men who enjoy reading novels about people coping with
real family issues.
·
Do
you have a Muse?
Not
in the classic sense. However, I do have a way to stimulate my creativity when
I get stuck. I take a shower. There is something about hot water on my head
that sparks my imagination. The people and the places come to life and it’s
almost like watching a movie. My husband can laughs when I come out of the
shower wrapped in a towel. “I can tell by that look on your face that you have
an idea,” he says. Sometimes he pleased, other times not so as he knows I’ll be
in my office for hours and he’s on his own for dinner.
·
What
project(s) are you working on now?
I’m
writing the second book in the Imperfect Caregiver series. This one about a
woman raising her young children while caring for a parent with Alzheimer’s.
·
Where
can readers find you and your book(s) online?
Confessions
of an Imperfect Caregiver is available on Amazon and Barnes&Noble in print
and e-book. Signed copies can be ordered via my website. www.bobbicarducci.com
It is also available from the publisher, OpenBooks Press.
You may contact her directly via email at bcarducci@comcast.net
Please sign up to follow The Imperfect Caregiver blog @
theimperfectcaregiver.com.
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May 29th – Sherri @ Juniper Grove (Book Review)
Synopsis:
Bobbi Carducci’s life was about to change. Her ill father-in-law’s odd behavior was a mystery when he came to live with her and Mike. For the next seven years Bobbi did everything she could to save him from himself – while he tried to convince everyone that he didn’t need her and that she was crazy.
A nonfiction that reads like a novel, Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver, is the story of a real family dealing with one of the fastest growing issues of our day. Caring for seriously ill family members at home. Meet Bobbi Carducci. Laugh, cry and pray with her as she does the hardest job she ever loved.
Every 26 seconds another person is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia in the U.S.
Excerpt from Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver:
For fifteen years I’d known him as my gentle, henpecked father-in-law. A man who longed for a little peace and quiet and always seemed eager to please. As saddened as I was by my mother-in-law’s passing, I had believed that living in my home, free from the constant yelling and criticism, he’d come out of his shell and begin to enjoy life.
Sitting in a hospital parking lot so many years later, I was just beginning to discover how very wrong I’d been.
Had he been pretending all these years? Is the real Rodger the one who announced to the nursing staff that I’m useless and no damned good? Does the medicine he takes every day allow him to be himself, or does it mask his true nature? Who is this man who lives in my house and paces the halls late at night? ..
.
Where did I go wrong? What did I miss and how can I make sure this doesn't happen again? Those questions and more went unanswered as I covered the miles between the hospital and home, my mind and body too tired to cope with the guilt I felt at that moment. Despite all my good intentions, I’d let him down.
Recommended Age: 13+
Recommended Age: 13+
About the Author:
Intrigued by TV doctors, Bobbi Carducci told everyone she was going to be a brain surgeon when she grew up. When she couldn't bring herself to cut up a frog in biology class she realized she had to find another way to get inside people’s heads and became a writer instead.
Bobbi was an in home caregiver for her serious ill father-in-law, Rodger, for seven years. Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver is the first book in a planned Caregiver series depicting the true stories of people caring for loved ones at home.
Bobbi Carducci is a former senior staff writer for the Purcellville Gazette, a small Washington, D.C. area newspaper. Her short stories appear in the Chicken Soup for the Soul and Cup of Comfort Anthologies as well is in print and online magazines.
Bobbi’s book for young readers, Storee Wryter Gets a Dog, received both a Mom’s Choice Award and a Living Now Award for Excellence. It was also named A Best Dog Book for Young Readers by Cesar Milan, The Dog Whisperer.
For three years she wrote a monthly book review column for About Families Publications before resigning to concentrate on writing Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver and her blog, The Imperfect Caregiver. Bobbi also writes regularly on care giving for AgingCare.com and The Caregiver Space.
Giveaway Details:
There is a tour wide giveaway. Prizes include the following:
- A print copy of Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver (US only)
- An ecopy of Confessions of an Imperfect Caregiver (Int)
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