I'm applying for a dispatching position and doing all the research I can for the job. This was a big help to that end and her life story was interesting as well..

I have been strongly considering a position as a 911 Operator/Dispatcher and have had a hard time finding information regarding the "real life" of the job. This book was exactly what I needed! I enjoyed the author's practical information on her perspective of days in the "Hot Seat". Her inner thoughts on good days, bad days and those days where she adds a delightful sense of humor kept it "real". I could feel myself sitting in the comm center with her. This is an easy book to read and I had a hard time putting it down. I book marked some pages and have gone back to read them just to see if I could see myself doing this job.

Now if you are looking for information to pass the test or other training information, this isn't the book. BUT I would highly recommend it to someone interested in the field, to someone who is already doing the job or to someone who just wants to know how someone on the other end of 911 felt.

I am so glad to find a book like this. It was great! Her 1st BOOK! Good Job!

Reading Answering 911 helped me realize what a Blessing 911 is! The generations after mine never knew life without 911. But they also didn't know life where parents turned to friends, family or the Bishop in needing help in parenting; we turned to a cookbook to learn how to cook a turkey; we called the Library for knowledge; and so on.
Those on the other end of 911 are truly the unsung Heroes! They were the first responders to Sept. 11th. They are the ones who get who Needs to be there First! And, usually, without a Thank You.
Here is my public THANKS for being on the other end!!

There are very few books out there from the perspective of a 911 call taker/dispatcher. Being a dispatcher myself I took an immediate interest in the subject matter of this book. The author does a good job in portraying what it's like to become a dispatcher, as well as what it's like on the job. I would urge readers to keep in mind that this is only the writings of a single dispatcher who works (mainly?) for this one agency. In short, things are different everywhere, and yet the same also in many senses. Regardless, it is a really good read. I imagine every dispatcher has, at one time or another, said to themselves, "man, I should write a book"!

If you are in this line of work this is a must read. It is amazing.

This was one of those "staff picks" at the library that catches your eye as you're trying to check out the books you *did* come in for... Answering 911: Life in the Hot Seat by Caroline Burau. Since it was relatively short and had a sufficiently quirky premise, I picked it up. It turned out to be one of the more entertaining reads I had this year.

Contents:
What It's Like; Destiny, or Something; On-the-Job Training; Joe Wilson; Power Phones; Lily; Good Neighbors; Friends in High Places; Anniversary; Jurisdiction; My Marsha; Kristen; Coppers; Hostages; Smucked; On the Night Shift; That Loving Feeling; Just Too Silly; changes; Words; On Burnout; The Parenting Option; On Wannabes; DOA; The Job; Retirement; Wherever You Go; Full Circle; Acknowledgements

Burau has led a far different life than most of us... She was somewhat of an outsider growing up, and ended up getting hooked on crack. This addiction, fed by her boyfriend, culminated with her doing a few days in a Florida jail when she was busted for "loitering", just moments before they were supposed to be picking up some product. She took a hard look at what she had become, and ended up going back home to start over. Her nursing career ended in college when she would get queasy over blood. Her career as a reporter wasn't working out much better. One day while following a story at the police station, she was encouraged to apply for a job as a 911 operator. Surprisingly, her drug background didn't discourage the interviewers, and she started a new life on the desk of a small-town emergency response agency. She's a great writer, so you quickly get sucked into her struggles to learn the lingo, the multiple terminals and switchboards, and the processes that are necessary to make sure the right people are sent out to the right incidents. She also shares the pain of having someone die on the other end of the line, and the agony of trying to know if you were the cause of it. She also ends up knowing far more about her neighbors than she wished she knew, and soon everyone she sees has some sort of background story that she can't just pretend didn't happen.

Other than the sheer entertainment factor of the book, it also made me think about those people who are on the other end of the phone line when we dial 911. We don't have a clue as to the stress and pressure they're under, and how each day exposes them to more ugliness and insanity than most of us experience in a lifetime. You almost want to dial 911 and just say "thanks for being there", except that they have other more important calls to take. :)

Well written, funny, and interesting... Definitely worth a read.

I went to college and became a nurse in spite of the fact I couldn't stand the sight of my own family's blood. I found I could still be a nurse. There is very little blood in hospital nursing and if blood does show up, it is most often drawn up in a tube to a bottle.

I love the structure and control of a hospital setting. On the other hand, I would not do well in the emergency room where the unknown happens frequently and the blood is less able to be controlled.

Reading Answering 911 felt real to me. I don't live in a perfect world. I know that my insurance man, my mailman, and 911 are not perfect. However, the fact that they continue to do their job well on a consistent basis is commendable.

I am tired of unrealistic drama. Sometimes life has too much drama, but within the same day, life can be boring. I liked reading stories that gave the big picture without whining or over dramatization. I liked reading about someone who found a place for herself in this world, but is willing to change when that place doesn't feel right.

Writing a memoir about living people and places, even when names are changed, is a special challenge. This kind of writing takes guts and skill.

I found it interesting that with 13 prior reviews no one mentioned the writing quality. I found it to be substandard and was surprised that the author could have possibly written for any decent news publication prior to her career in dispatching. I was equally surprised at all of the typos strewn throughout the book. Was the editor sleeping on the job? The beginning of the book, when the author describes life before 9-1-1, was horribly written, and I almost had to stop reading it entirely. However, once you get past that, the rest of the book can be quite engrossing.

On the bright side, it is an accurate portrayal of life in the comm center. I have been dispatching for 15 years, and having found it to be quite a rewarding career, shall be dispatching for many, many more. The author did a good job of touching on many different aspects of the job, good and bad.

To mention something another reviewer touched on, I did disagree with the author's handling of non-emergent 9-1-1 calls. I understand why she said what she did, though. She wants people to call 9-1-1 if they're in doubt. However, we take too many bogus calls on 9-1-1 because people were too lazy to look up the non-emergency number, and that takes away from real emergencies. I have had to put actual emergencies on hold to answer noise complaint calls on 9-1-1, and that's a shame.

If you are interested in what life might be like as a 9-1-1 dispatcher, this book will give you an insight, and, as many have said, it is a quick read. Enjoy!

P.S. Most agencies I have been in contact with would not hire a prior crack addict. They fear that a person will fall back on drugs during times of stress.

I feel this was an accurate look into a 911 dispatchers work. It seems as though because she works in a sheriffs office she has to handle the non emergencies also. there are some reviews that say it is a little hard to follow. but by being a 911 dispatcher you get used to broken stories. I very rarely read novels and thought this was very good.

If amazon had the option, I would actually have given this 3.5 stars because it's better then a 3 but not quite a 4. I do understand that (depending on the location), a lot of 911 calls aren't real emergencies. Other 911 dispatchers or people who just want to know what it's like to be a dispatcher will probably enjoy the book. But if you're looking for interesting and exciting 911 stories, this book doesn't provide much of that.

The majority of the calls the author describes are calls that never should have been made to an emergency line because they aren't emergencies! Many of them aren't even close to being emergencies. Personally, I would never call 911 unless it was a true emergency. I have only called once so far in my life when I was the victim of a hit and run car accident and I needed an ambulance.

I'm guessing that dispatchers get those kinds of calls a lot and if it were me, that would make me crazy. Yet the author doesn't ever seem to remind her callers that 911 is for emergencies only (like when someone is calling about their neighbor's dog barking) and I wonder why she never says anything to the callers in the stories or to the readers as a means of educating the public about abusing 911.

Still, it's a fast read with some entertainment value. I guess it says something that I chose to read the whole thing. But it definitely was not what I was expecting or hoping for.

I adore "behind-the-scenes" stories like this one, and Burau's book definitely gave me a new perspective on the unsung heroes at the other end of the 9-1-1 line. Burau paints a vivid picture of life in a windowless room, complete with colorful characters and office politics.

Well-written, humorous, and touching, the book gets a thumbs-up. But was I the only one who had trouble with the idea that a former drug addict could find her way to such a high-pressure, mission-critical job?

Great book! I really enjoyed reading this book, it gave great insight into what it must be like to be a 911 operator. I would recommend it to anyone.