Tree Barking: A Memoir Book

As a home health therapist, Nesta Rovina has seen and heard it all: a stroke victim who learned to roll off her bed at night to avoid getting caught in the crossfire of rival gangs and drug dealers; a man who lived off grass and bugs for a week while fleeing his native Laos; a sixteen-year-old gunshot victim who was left for dead by a man targeting prostitutes; a heroin addict who—when her left hand was amputated after becoming infected from frequent injections—began "popping" on her right hand. In telling their stories, Rovina's own story begins to emerge: her upbringing in South Africa, her family tragedy in Israel, her decision to become a health-care worker. Confronting America's bruised and battered health-care system, she shows compassion and understanding for all her housebound clients who—no matter their circumstances—carry on with faith, humor, and kindness.