Sunday 25 November 2012

Heads in Beds by Jacob Tomsky

As a certified nosy person, I'm a sucker for employment memoirs;  I will happily sit and read about life as a doctor, nurse, vet, explorer, retail assistant - in fact I will read about anything that is different from what I do myself.  So I was excited to request Heads in Beds: A Reckless Memoir of Hotels, Hustles, and So-Called Hospitality from Netgalley.  In it, Tomsky details his rise through the hotel industry from valet parking through to front desk manager.  Having worked many jobs within the industry, Tomsky is in the perfect position to detail what life as a hotel worker is really like and to give insider information for potential guests keen on upgrades and other perks.

Heads in Beds was very good light relief and I enjoyed reading it.  I'm not a frequent hotel user, but I've checked into enough hotels to recognise lots of the situations detailed in the book.  As always, I was shocked by how inconsiderate and rude members of the public can be towards service staff.  Tomsky does come across as a bit angry in places, but having worked in retail myself (thankfully, many years ago now!), I'm sure that this anger was justified.  There's only so long you can take being treated like the dirt on someone's shoe before you want to snap!  There are mentions of polite customers and good experiences but these become less frequent as the book goes on and Tomsky becomes more disillusioned with his job.  It's safe to say I won't be applying to be a front desk operator any time soon!

One thing I found very interesting was the comparison between the two main hotels Tomsky worked in, luxury hotels in New Orleans and New York.  In New Orleans, the staff were valued and trusted and consequently often went above and beyond in order to provide good service to their guests.  In New York, they were constantly monitored for any slip up, treated as if they were slackers and initiative was punished rather than rewarded.  This led to resentment and poor service, with no one willing to go the extra mile.  Even though Tomsky is writing specifically about the hotel industry in Heads in Beds, I've seen this kind of thing in every single working environment I have been in.  When will managers learn that staff work better if you trust them, value them and simply leave them to it?

Heads in Beds was on the whole clearly written with lots of humour.  It didn't set my world alight, but I found it interesting and enjoyable.  I think it could have benefited from being edited down slightly as it dragged in the later sections, with too much page time being devoted to Tomsky's time as a front desk operator.  I'm sure that fellow nosy readers will enjoy this book as much as I did!

Source: From the publisher via Netgalley
Publication Date: 20th November 2012
Score: 3 out of 5

18 comments:

  1. Haha, I loved the first few lines of your review! I am not too sure how much I may read this kind of a memoir, but it made me think...as you said, light reading it may be, but still, the service and hospitality industry - wonder what goes on behind the smiles!

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    1. I've only worked in retail and my smile was definitely plastered on to cover up how annoyed I was at times!

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  2. A certified nosy person ;) Love that! I have to say that I fall in that category as well. I'll be looking for this book one of these days!

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    1. I think we all fall into that category if we are honest with ourselves :P

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  3. I know what you mean about being interested in other professions! Memoirs a lovely way to live them vicariously through someone else. Customers come in all kinds and would seem fodder for great stories so I imagine this would be a pretty interesting read... (or maybe like in Kitchen Confidential you'd find out a few things behind the scenes things you wish you didn't?)

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    1. I'm interested but will be steering clear of a career in the hotel industry after reading this book. I loved Kitchen Confidential although it did put me off eating out for a while!

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  4. I work in a customer service career (librarian) and can see how it would be very tempting to write about all of the horrible customer experiences that happen. I find satisfaction in knowing that librarians don't have the worst of it! I'm nosy, too, and love 'behind the scenes' accounts so I will have to look for this one at the library.

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    1. Now I've been a teacher I don't think I could do customer service; I'm too used to bossing people around rather than doing what they want :P

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  5. I find employment issues interesting, too. :) Long ago, I use to work at the front desk of a resort lodge -- I never cried in front of a customer before until that job...that was one of the most stressful jobs I've ever worked.

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    1. I cried working at a bank too - too many people didn't understand that not everything was my fault!

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  6. I'll bet this one is interesting. I reviewed Cruising Attitude earlier this year which was by a flight attendant and it was certainly entertaining and enlightening. "Certified Nosy Person". Love it!

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    1. I'll keep a look-out for Cruising Attitude, I think I would enjoy it. I imagine a flight attendant is a bit of a nightmare job actually!

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  7. I've seen this and am intrigued. I can't decide if I want to read it. I don't know if I WANT to know what goes on behind it all!!!

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  8. Haha 'certified nosy person' - me too! I think I'll have to get myself a copy of this.

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  9. I also thought "I never want that job" when I read this book. I couldn't believe how the new management monitored their every move (bathroom breaks, lunch breaks, etc.). On the flip side, I couldn't believe all of the shenanigans of the employees (hooking up in rooms and drug use, etc.).

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  10. One to read I think and someone who worked in a hotel for a couple of years, I will probably relate to some of it! I really do not think I could go back to that sort of work. Well not Front of House anyway.

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