Loving Leanne

by Debbie Roome, Dorothy Ade

Leanne never married, never had children and never lived on her own. She
never drove a car or caught a bus unaided. She never cooked a meal,
washed her clothes or ironed a shirt. She could not because she was born
with a condition called Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome (RTS). This rare
genetic disorder causes mental and physical disabilities and she was
always dependent on others.
Leanne's life story is told by her mother and sister and they examine
the highs and lows of caring for a mentally and physically disabled
person. The book is divided into seven chapters which look at Leanne's
early days, how Rubinstein-Taybi Syndrome affected her, her schooling,
her extensive medical history, her spiritual and social life, the
process of caring for her daily, and her final days. It also includes a
list of RTS characteristics and problems and explains how these play out
in daily life. Loving Leanne is a story of hope and triumph with a
healthy dose of reality mixed into it. An ideal read for anyone who is
caregiver to a disabled person or for parents who have a child with RTS.
Leanne passed away on the 1st January 2014 at the age of 47.

121 pages, Kindle Edition

First published December 26, 2012

About the author

Debbie Roome was born and raised in Zimbabwe and later spent fifteen years in South Africa. In 2006 she moved to New Zealand with her husband and five children. Writing has been her passion since the age of six and she loves to write stories that touch people's lives and turn them towards God. Over the years she has won many awards and trophies for her work, including placing first in the Rose & Crown Novel Writing Competition in 2009 and 2012 and second in the Faithwriters' Page Turner Contest in 2010 and 2014. In 2015 she placed first in the Faithwriters' Page Turner Contest. Her novel Contagious Hope was a finalist for the Australasian CALEB award in 2013. Debbie's writing has opened doors for public speaking and she is often asked to share her life story and her experiences as a writer.

Reviews

[Leanne · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed the message of this book as it told a lovely story and was inspiring to read about someone who is faced with such challenges but still keeps going despite the hardships. The book raises awareness and insight about RTS and the challenges for both the care providers and the sufferer. Even though the message of the book is nice, I have to say it was very poorly written. There were spelling and grammar mistakes and the book seemed to be all over the place with no clear path. The same things were mentioned multiple times throughout the book and there seemed to be stories that were not very relevant to the ultimate message. The stories that the authors tell also seem to be a bit ableist on both their part and the sufferer's. All in all, I enjoyed learning about Leanne's life and how she was cared for. It was nice to have an understanding both of what Leanne went through as well as her family members throughout her life.