So a couple months ago, I received my very first ARC from Netgalley. I was incredibly excited to read The Trauma Cleaner by Sarah Krasnostein but because of my slump, it took me awhile to get to it. I read it this past week and these are my unbiased thoughts.
The Trauma Cleaner starts the first chapter with the author meeting Sandra, a woman who specializes in cleaning up after deaths, hoarders, meth labs, and other types of squalor. We then move to a scene where Sandra and her team are cleaning up at a mentally ill woman's house. The descriptions are nearly palpable and quite disgusting. The chapters alternate between Sandra's life story (being born a boy, growing up in an abusive environment, transitioning, etc.) and a different type of job that Sandra and her cleaners take on. This book is part biography and part case studies. I found both to be very intriguing. However, towards the last two chapters, the author starts to psychoanalyze Sandra's decisions and motives given what she knows about her upbringing. Additionally, she includes conversations that do not seem important to the story. These were written very poorly and I found myself skimming over those parts. Overall, I gave the book a rating of a 3 out of 5. I enjoyed most of it but felt that it could've been written and edited better.
I'd definitely recommend but if you're at all squeamish, it may not be for you.
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