Keeper: One House, Three Generations, and a Journey into Alzheimer's
A nonfiction book that uses reporting and analysis to trace Sweden's welfare-state model, weighing its strengths, weaknesses, and transformation.
Work Information
A nonfiction book that uses reporting and analysis to trace Sweden's welfare-state model, weighing its strengths, weaknesses, and transformation.
Book Information
- Publisher
- Broadway Books
- Published
- 2010-08-17
- Pages
- 336 pages
- Language
- 英語
- Size
- 14.99 x 3.56 x 21.34 cm
- ISBN-13
- 9780307719119
- ISBN-10
- 9780307719119
- Price
- 11950 JPY
- Category
- 洋書/Medical Books/Medicine/Internal Medicine/Neurology/Alzheimer's Disease
Five years ago, Andrea Gillies— writer, wife, and mother of three—seeing that her husband's parents were struggling to cope, invited them to move in. She and her newly extended family relocated to a big Victorian house on a remote, windswept peninsula in the far north of Scotland, leaving behind their friends and all that was familiar; hoping to find a new life, and new inspiration for work. Her mother-in-law Nancy was in the middle stages of Alzheimer's Disease, and Keeper charts her journey into dementia, its impact on her personality and her family, and the author's researches into what dementia is. As the grip of her disease tightens, Nancy's grasp on everything we think of as ordinary unravels before our eyes. Diary entries and accounts of conversations with Nancy track the slow unravelling. The journey is marked by frustration, isolation, exhaustion, and unexpected black comedy. For the author, who knew little about dementia at the outset, the learning curve was steeper than she could have imagined. The most pernicious quality of Alzheimer’s, Gillies suggests, is that the loss of memory is, in effect, the loss of one’s self, and Alzheimer’s, because it robs us of our intrinsic self-knowledge, our ability to connect with others, and our capacity for self-expression, is perhaps the most terrible and most dehumanizing illness. Moreover, as Gillies reminds us, the effects of Alzheimer’s are far-reaching, impacting the lives of caregivers and their loved ones in every way imaginable. Keeper is a fiercely honest “glimpse into the dementia abyss”—an endlessly engrossing meditation on memory and the mind, on family, and on a society that is largely indifferent to the far-reaching ravages of this baffling disease.
ANDREA GILLIES is a writer and journalist. Keeper won the 2009 Wellcome Trust Book Prize, the United Kingdom's pre-eminent popular science writing award, and the 2010 Orwell Prize. She lives with her family in St. Andrews, Scotland, and has just completed her first novel.
Reviews
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Must read book!
This book should be read by anyone who has an aging loved one. Dealing with my Mom's newly-diagnosed dementia, I read this book and got so much insight into the disease. I have had my whole family read Keeper, so that we can deal with the reality of what we are facing as caregivers. The book gives a real-life account, not just medical advice like most books on the topic. I thank the author for having the courage to write this.
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A Must Read for Dementia carers
A real life story that includes the uncomfortable things that carers don't usually talk about. I laughed, cried, and could identify with the author. An open honestly written account.
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Needed Reading for Dementia Caregivers
The book was well written. It was interesting. It was scary and disturbing, but that's the nature of the disease.
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Cathartic Dementia story for Caregivers
I LOVED this book. My father died with Lewey-Body Dementia and my Mother is now in an ALF due to dementia issues. Andrea Gillies is an exceptional writer and conveys this disease with humor, love, and best of all - medical and scientific information on a layman's level. Mrs. Gillies truly loves her mother-in-law, Nancy, and was very devoted to her well-being through thick and thin. As she describes the stages and minute-by-minute behavior of Nancy, she provides detailed but understandable information of exactly what is going on in the brain and why it effects the behavior of the sufferer. Mrs. Gillies also sees and conveys the humor of some of Nancy's behavior - while I am sure, that at the moment it occured it was not funny at all - in hindsight, and with talented writing, she is able to convey that humor. I recall many moments of my Dad's behavior that was funny, and he would laugh right along with me. Mrs. Gillies also speaks to the health care issues our governments are facing and the high cost of nursing home care. Anyone with a family member suffering from dementia or Alzheimer's should read this book as well as anyone who has a friend "suffering" as a caregiver. It is a fast read due to her wonderful presentation. And, the last chapter is the best part - it leaves the caregiver at least comfortable and at most, not guilty for leaving their loved one to a skilled nursing home where they will actually live an easier life.
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Facing the storm - A family's caregiving journey
This true story of a family's decision (told from the perspective of the daughter-in-law) to take on the caregiving of the elderly mother-in-law diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease is both entertaining, educational and full of insights into the human condition; wanting to do the right thing, questioning your own judgement and the meaning of self. It's a testament to the bond of family and the lengths one would take to do the right thing. An incredibly good read!
Related Literary Awards
- Orwell Prize Edition 17 (2010) ・Winner