Reference Library

Reference Books:

When Love Gets Tough, Doug Manning (1983):
When Love Gets Tough, Doug Manning (1983):
This book, first written in 1983 has touched over a million people by providing wisdom and guidance in making a nursing home placement for a loved one. In this updated version the author has expanded some chapters to bring in more information about family meetings, legal and financial considerations and working with the home after a placement.

Don't Take my Grief Away, Doug Manning (1993):
Don’t Take my Grief Away, Doug Manning (1993):
Nobody addresses the needs of a grieving person like Doug Manning. His warm conversational style takes the reader through all the emotions and experiences that accompany the death of a loved one.

On September 25, 2010, Doug’s wife of fifty-seven years died and his world was significantly changed. He decided that it was time – time to update and expand this most beloved book. It was time to share some of the personal experiences and wisdom gained on his own path to healing as well as offering stories of struggle and promise from some of the thousands of individuals who have shared their hearts with him.

Please take me Home Before Dark, published by Hillsboro Press (2006):
Please take me Home Before Dark, published by Hillsboro Press (2006):
Please Take Me Home Before Dark provides inspiration, information, and support to family members and care professionals of Alzheimer’s patients. The authors share their mother’s progression through Alzheimer’s disease to benefit others facing the same situation.

36 Hour Day, 5th Edition, Nancy L. Mace (2011):
36 Hour Day, 5th Edition, Nancy L. Mace (2011):
When someone in your family suffers from Alzheimer’s disease or other related memory loss diseases, both you and your loved ones face immense challenges. For over twenty years this book has been the trusted “bible” for families affected by dementia disorders. Now thoroughly revised and updated, this guide provides all the practical and specific advice you need to make care easier, improve quality of life and lift the whole family’s spirits. It features the latest medical research and news on the current delivery of care, with new appendices including websites and association listings.

Parenting Your Parent, Bart J. Mindszenthy (2005):
Parenting Your Parent, Bart J. Mindszenthy (2005):
When our parents reach a certain age and have difficulty coping, we find ourselves wondering how to provide them with the kind of love, care, support, and attention they need – just as they have done for us all our lives. Parenting your Parent shows, through case studies, that you are not alone and offers advice to help you along this difficult but rewarding journey.

The Parent Care Conversation, Dan Taylor (2006):
The Parent Care Conversation, Dan Taylor (2006):
A comprehensive and empathetic program for addressing, planning, and putting into effect long-term elder care. Long -term care for aging parents is a sensitive, often difficult, but ultimately inevitable issue with which all of us will have to cope sooner or later. The Parent Care Conversation offers a step-by-step approach for families to follow that will enable them to develop workable plans of action.

Let's Talk - The Care Years, Patty Randall (2007)
Let’s Talk – The Care Years, Patty Randall (2007)
Described as “a must-read for boomers with aging parents, soon-to-be retirees, and young seniors in our country”, this book provides practical, step-by-step suggestions on the key care-related topics, which a daughter-son-spouse-senior may be tackling now or will later have to handle during this stage in their own or loved one’s lives. Some topics include how to: hire, adjust to, and work with a variety of caregivers; deal with worrisome medications; make an at-home living environment safe; decide on aging-in-place and nursing home care; serve as an advocate at key times; balance work and a family with caregiving duties and obligations; say good-bye and go forwards when care ends.

The Eldercare Handbook, Stella Mora Henry (2006):
The Eldercare Handbook, Stella Mora Henry (2006):
Written by long-term care specialist Henry Eldercare, The Eldercare Handbook covers issues all families need to address: warning signs of impending dementia, denial, role reversal, sibling relationships, caregiver burnout, the best kind of long-term care for a loved one, and issues regarding finances and Medicare. The tone is informative and accessible.

The Canadian Retirement Guide, Jill O'Donnell (2004):
The Canadian Retirement Guide, Jill O’Donnell (2004):
The Canadian Retirement Guide sets up a process by which we can plan for retirement as a family, taking into consideration the retiree, the spouse and those who depend on them. Topics covered include estate planning, wills, taxation, how to choose financial professionals, your role as a caregiver, physical and mental health issues, and the different challenges facing us as we enter our golden years.

250 Eldercare Questions Everyone Should Ask, Lita Epstein (2009):
250 Eldercare Questions Everyone Should Ask, Lita Epstein (2009):
This book will answer all the financial and legal questions that can arise when caring for the elderly, including: How do you plan for the management of the elder’s affairs should he/she become incompetent in the future? Is the proper insurance being carried or can it be restructured to reduce expenses? How much money can I give my elders without impacting government aid? What are the goals of estate tax planning?

Long Term Care - How to plan and pay for it, J.L. Mathews (2010):
Long Term Care – How to plan and pay for it, J.L. Mathews (2010):
Get the best care in the right place, for the right price — this book shows you how! Finding the right long-term care often means making difficult decisions during difficult times. Long-Term Care helps you understand the alternatives to nursing facilities and shows you how to find the best care you can afford

Our Turn to Parent: Shared Experience and Practical Advice on Caring for Aging Parents in Canada, Barbara Dunn (2009):
Our Turn to Parent: Shared Experience and Practical Advice on Caring for Aging Parents in Canada, Barbara Dunn (2009):
Our Turn to Parent offers practical advice on; deciding when you need to step in and help, developing the caregiver relationship with your parents, discussing with the family your parents’ hopes and plans for the future, navigating the medical system, organizing your parents’ finances before they become incapacitated, making clear your parents’ personal care and end-of-life wishes, and caring for yourself.

Mothering Mother: A Daughter's Humorous and Heartbreaking Memoir, Carol D. O'Dell (2007):
Mothering Mother: A Daughter’s Humorous and Heartbreaking Memoir, Carol D. O’Dell (2007):
O’Dell, a member of the “sandwich generation”–made up of boomers taking care of both their own children and their elderly parents–portrays the experience of looking after a mother suffering from Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s with brutal honesty and refreshing grace. A beautiful rendering of a difficult but all-too-common situation, told with plenty of humor, a touch of martyrdom, and much love.

Caring for Your Aging Parents: An Emotional Guide to Nurturing Your Loved Ones While Taking Care of Yourself, Raeann Berman (2009):
Caring for Your Aging Parents: An Emotional Guide to Nurturing Your Loved Ones While Taking Care of Yourself, Raeann Berman (2009):
The fastest-growing segment of our population is people 85 and older, and many of them are now cared for by their children. This comforting and poignant guide bridges the gap between elderly parents and the adult children who care for them, with trusted answers to questions most asked by caregivers in this challenging situation. Covering health, finances, living arrangements, communication, and emotional struggles, Caring for Your Aging Parents offers caring, professional advice for the increasingly difficult decisions that caregivers face.

Learning to Speak Alzheimer's, Joanne Koenig Coste (2004):
Learning to Speak Alzheimer’s, Joanne Koenig Coste (2004):
More than four million Americans suffer from Alzheimer’s, and as many as twenty million have close relatives or friends with the disease. Revolutionizing the way we perceive and live with Alzheimer’s, Joanne Koenig Coste offers a practical approach to the emotional well-being of both patients and caregivers that emphasizes relating to patients in their own reality. Her accessible and comprehensive method, which she calls habilitation, works to enhance communication between care partners and patients and has proven successful with thousands of people living with dementia.

A Care Giver's Guide to Alzheimer's and Other Related Diseases, Judith McCann-Beranger (2004)
A Care Giver’s Guide to Alzheimer’s and Other Related Diseases, Judith McCann-Beranger (2004)
Witnessing firsthand the decline of a family member is one of the most difficult things we can go through. How to adapt and give our family members the best care we can is at the heart of this practical, user friendly guide. A Caregiver’s Guide is being used by paid caregivers and families all across the country. It provides information on what Alzheimer disease is, as well as its diagnosis and stages, treatments, suggestions for ensuring a safe home environment, and practical tips on communicating, activities, bathing, eating, spirituality, and sexuality.

The Caregiver: A Life with Alzheimer's, Aaron Alterra (2000):
The Caregiver: A Life with Alzheimer’s, Aaron Alterra (2000):
Aaron and Stella Alterra had been married for more than sixty years when Aaron began to notice puzzling lapses in his wife’s memory. Innocuous at first, they became more severe and more alarming. After a series of appointments and tests, the Alterras were informed that Stella was one of the more than 4.5 million Americans with Alzheimer’s disease. Alterra chronicles his transformation from husband to caregiver after his wife’s diagnosis. The Caregiver is an intelligent, beautifully reflective testimony to how family members turned caregivers become the ultimate advocates for their loved ones in the face of a disease with no cure.

Late Stage Dementia, Michael Gordon (2011):
Late Stage Dementia, Michael Gordon (2011):
“I want to provide the best care possible. The suffering has gone on for a long time, and I want to be sure the end stage is as comfortable as possible.” This common sentiment is expressed by both health care professionals responsible for caring for frail elders experiencing the later stages of dementia and family members trying to ensure the most compassionate care for their loved ones. This guidebook reflects Dr. Gordon’s extensive experience with health care professionals and families struggling with these poignant and difficult decisions.

Talking with your aging parent, Mark Edinburg (1987):
Talking with your aging parent, Mark Edinburg (1987):
Communication between elderly parents and adult children about changes in lifestyle created by the aging process can be a daunting task for all concerned. Edinberg, a clinical psychologist, explores communications styles, skills, and strategies and identifies basic patterns of family interaction.

Mother, I'm doing the best I can: the Boomer's Guide to Aging Parents, Len Fabiano (1997):
Mother, I’m doing the best I can: the Boomer’s Guide to Aging Parents, Len Fabiano (1997):
This book is about the many problems and pressures experienced by families caring for an aging parent during times of loss and crisis. It clarifies for family the constant struggle between their heart and mind, that many stressors, the emotional turmoil and the difficult decisions that must be made. Len offers practical solutions to help manage what is occurring and what may occur.

Comfort of Home of Alzheimer's Disease: A Guide for Care Givers, Maria M. Meyer (2007):
Comfort of Home of Alzheimer’s Disease: A Guide for Care Givers, Maria M. Meyer (2007):
The Comfort of Home series shows family and professional home caregivers how to be ready for all of Alzheimer’s stages, with special emphasis on how to provide physical, day-to-day care safely and without conflict. Some of the important topics covered here include responding to problem behaviors, arranging the home to make it safe and comfortable, purchasing equipment, traveling with Alzheimer’s patients, handling emergencies, and communicating with healthcare professionals to get effective service.

Aging is Living: Myth Breaking Stories from Long-Term Care, Irene Borins Ash and Irv Ash (2009):
Aging is Living: Myth Breaking Stories from Long-Term Care, Irene Borins Ash and Irv Ash (2009):
Aging is Living presents, in pictures and prose, the personal accounts of long term care residents who show, contrary to popular perception, what an inspiring and interesting life you can have. The book contains inspirational, informative stories of twenty-five long term care residents. They all communicate candidly about the joys and difficulties of living with aging and the role of long term care in their lives. Through interviews and candid photographs, particular emphasis is placed on the positive facets of these lives: pursuing personal interests, remaining connected to personal values and relationships, and sharing this insight with others.

Fictional Books:

Still Alice, Lisa Geneva (2008):
Still Alice, Lisa Geneva (2008):
Still Alice is as compelling as A Beautiful Mind and as powerful as Ordinary People. You will gain an understanding of those affected by early-onset Alzheimer’s disease and remain moved and inspired long after you have put it down.

Movies:

Away from Her (2006):
Away from Her (2006):
Starring: Julie Christie & Gordon Pinsent
Based on the short story “The Bear came over the Mountain” by Alice Munro (1999).
Away From Her is a beautifully moving love story that deals with memory and the circuitous, unnamable paths of a long marriage. Married for 50 years, Grant and Fiona’s commitment to each other appears unwavering, and their everyday life is full of tenderness and humour. This serenity is broken only by the occasional, carefully restrained reference to the past, giving a sense that this marriage may not always have been such a fairy tale. This tendency of Fiona’s to make such references, along with her increasingly evident memory loss, creates a tension that is usually brushed off casually by both of them. As the lapses become more obvious and dramatic, it is no longer possible for either of them to ignore the fact that Fiona is suffering from Alzheimer’s disease.