2016-06-30
Overview:

  • The Forgetting: Alzheimer's, Portrait of an Epidemic, by David Shenk, Anchor, 2003.
    Shenk traces the disease's path through history, uncovers its appearances in literature and explains its science from discovery to present-day searches for a cure.


  • Practical Guides:

  • Learning to Speak Alzheimer's: A Groundbreaking Approach for Everyone Dealing with the Disease, by Joanne Koenig Coste, Houghton Mifflin, 2003
    The author, having seen Alzheimer's up close since her husband's middle age diagnosis, offers a new approach to communicating with those afflicted with the disease.
  • The Best Friends Approach to Alzheimer's Care, by Virginia Bell and David Troxel, Health Professions Press, 2003.
    Shows family members and professionals how to offer emotional support to patients with Alzheimer's disease, outlining an approach involving problem solving, encouraging positive behavior, and improving communications.
  • Talking to Alzheimer's: Simple Ways to Connect When You Visit with a Family Member or Friend, by Claudia J. Strauss, New Harbinger, 2002.
    Provides tools for effective, meaningful, and mutually rewarding communication with people with Alzheimer's.
  • The 36-Hour Day: A Family Guide to Caring for Persons with Alzheimer's Disease, Related Dementing Illnesses, and Memory Loss in Later Life, by Nancy L. Mace & Peter V. Rabins, Johns Hopkins Press, 2001.
    First published in 1981 this book has been revised and updated several times and is widely regarded as the definitive handbook for families coping with Alzheimer's.
  • There's Still a Person in There: The Complete Guide to Treating and Coping With Alzheimer's, by Michael Castleman, Dolores Gallagher-Thompson and Matthew Naythons, Perigee, 2000.
    A comprehensive guide to living with Alzheimer's, for patients and caregivers.
  • Alzheimer's Disease: Frequently Asked Questions, by Frena Gray-Davidson, Lowell House, 1999.
    Matter-of-fact answers to the full range of medical, emotional, and practical questions facing people close to someone with Alzheimer's disease.
  • Alzheimer's Early Stages: First Steps in Caring and Treatment, by Daniel Kuhn, Hunter House, 1999.
    One of the only books to focus on the early stages of Alzheimer's disease, this easy-to-read guide by a long-time staff member of a federally-funded Alzheimer's disease center is a valuable resource for people just beginning to cope with the disease.
  • Alzheimer's: The Answers You Need, by Helen D. Davies & Michael P. Jensen, Elder Books, 1998.
    This book is unusual in addressing itself to the patient with early Alzheimer's, rather than to caretakers. Useful information presented in a simple q&a format.
  • Personal Stories:

  • Do I Know You? A Family's Journey Through Aging and Alzheimer's, by Bette Ann Moskowitz, Taylor, 2004.
    This writer chronicles her mother's experience with Alzheimer's and her own experience as a caregiver.


  • Shared Stories from Daughters of Alzheimer's : Writing a Path to Peace, by Persis Granger (Ed.), iUniverse Star, 2004.
    Collection of nine women's personal accounts of caring for loved ones and losing them to Alzheimer's.
  • Losing My Mind : An Intimate Look at Life with Alzheimer's, and When It Gets Dark : An Enlightened Reflection on Life with Alzheimer's, by Thomas DeBaggio, Free Press, 2002 and 2003.
    Two books by a journalist-turned-farmer who was surprised to be diagnosed with Alzheimer's at 57 and resolved to write his way through the process of memory loss.
  • Speaking Our Minds: Personal Reflections from Individuals with Alzheimer's, by Lisa Snyder, W H Freeman & Co., 1999.
    Extensive interviews with seven people in the early stages of Alzheimer's disease offer insights into the patient's perspective.
  • Tears in God's Bottle: Reflections on Alzheimer's Caregiving, by Dr. Wayne Ewing, Blessingway Books, 1999.
    The spiritual reflections of a former pastoral counselor and Episcopal priest over the course of his wife's decline and ultimate death with Alzheimer's.
  • Into that Good Night, by Ron Rozelle, Farrar Straus & Giroux, 1998.
    A son's haunting, beautifully-written memoir of his father life--and his death to Alzheimer's.
  • In a Tangled Wood: An Alzheimer's Journey, by Joyce Dyer & Ian Frazier, Southern Methodist University Press, 1996.
    A daughter's account of her mother's slow decline, especially her years in a residential Alzheimer's unit.
  • Catch a Falling Star: Living with Alzheimer's, by Betty Baker Spohr & Jean Valens Bullard, Storm Peak Press, 1995.
    A wife's brave, loving, sometimes humorous chronicle of her husband's 11-year struggle with Alzheimer's.
  • My Journey into Alzheimer's Disease, by Robert Davis, Tyndale House Pub., 1989.
    One of the earliest first-person accounts of having Alzheimer's, written by the former pastor of one of Miami's largest churches, with additional chapters by his wife and principal caretaker.
  • For Children:

  • What's Happening to Grandpa?, by Maria Shriver, Little Brown & Company, 2004.
    An illustrated story about one family's coping with Alzheimer's disease and memory loss.
  • The Sunsets of Miss Olivia Wiggins, by Lester L. Laminack, Peachtree Publishers, 1998.
    Picture book to help kids understand seniors' rich inner life of memory-even when they cannot communicate it to them.
  • Great-Uncle Alfred Forgets, by Ben Schecter, HarperCollins, 1996.
    Good-humored tale that explains to one young girl the reason her great-uncle struggles to remember things.
  • For Seniors in Decline:

  • The Complete Guide to Alzheimer's-Proofing Your Home, by Mark L. Warren, Purdue Univ. Press, 2000.
    Shows you how to create a home environment that will help you cope with the many difficulties associated with Alzheimer's.
  • Brain Exercises:

  • Reversing Memory Loss : Proven Methods for Regaining, Stengthening, and Preserving Your Memory, Featuring the Latest Research and Treaments, by Vernon H. and Jeffrey P. Mark, Mariner, 2000.
    Presents a step-by-step program for finding the underlying causes of confusion and memory loss and for working out a plan to preserve competency and memory.
  • Keep Your Brain Alive: 83 Neurobic Exercises, by Lawrence Katz, Workman, 1999.
    Offers 83 simple "neurobic" exercises designed to fight off the effects of mental aging by helping to prevent memory loss and increase mental fitness.
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