“Cleaning the Kingdom: Insider Tales of Keeping Walt’s Dream Spotless” is a detail-oriented explanation of what it is like to be a member of Disneyland’s highly touted and highly effective custodial team. Ken Pellman and Lynn Barron tell great stories in bite-sized chunks that make this an easy and entertaining read, especially if you have any sort of connection to Disneyland throughout the 1990s and early 2000s. They don’t shy away from more difficult topics, like vomit, slacking or death. They give an honest appraisal of what it was like to work at Disneyland.

Fortunately, the in-depth analysis of Disneyland Custodial is totally worth sorting through the errors (which according to author Pellman have been cleaned up since I bought my book [see comment below]). From a short history of the leadership to the nuts and bolts of everyday life, to seniority and unions, Pellman and Barron reveal it all. Tony Baxter makes a couple of guest appearances as do some other Disney celebs.

Whether you want to know why Indiana Jones and the Forbidden Eye was down so often or you just want to know why someone would choose to be a janitor, “Cleaning the Kingdom” makes for an informative and fun read. Pellman and Barron run the Sweep Spot podcast and have Patreon page. They save the best in their book for last, with pages 398 through 422 being the reasons that you should purchase this book, especially if you need more positivity and joy in your life. Pellman and Barron have also released a second book: “Cleaning the Kingdom: Night, Day, Past and Present.”

This article was originally published at www.penguinate.weebly.com. It has been edited and updated.

For more books on Disney, check out “Disneyland Is Creativity,” “The Haunted Mansion Is Creativity” and “Penguinate! The Disney Company.”