Children’s stories about memory loss, Alzheimer’s, and dementia resonate with me because I know firsthand how difficult it is to care for someone with this disease. My Aunt Luella had Alzheimer’s, and I cared for her in my home. When my aunt no longer remembered me, my heart ached. I felt hopeless, afraid. I can only imagine how difficult it is for a child to watch as a beloved grandparent forgets them. I found these five books to be helpful and inspiring. They offer hope. They embrace the love that still exists.
Amelia's grandmother doesn't remember her because she has dementia, but Amelia is determined to find a way to help. She knows that if she can get her grandmother to talk about the stories she told Amelia over the years, then it will help bring the memories back and make all of them happy. Amelia comes up with a clever plan to assist her grandmother...but will it be enough?
When I read The Remember Balloons, I thought about my aunt Luella and cried. Like the grandpa in the story, her memories had left her.
The illustrator portrayed memories as different colored balloons, each containing a special moment. Grandpa and the child’s parents had lots of balloons, but as time went by, Grandpa’s balloons floated away. Grandpa even lost the balloon of a memory he and the child shared, the time they fished off the dock.
When Grandpa no longer remembered him, the child’s balloons increased. He now held all Grandpa’s memories. He would tell Grandpa his stories. This book explains memory loss to a child in a way they can understand. The imagery with the balloons spark interest and the story is simple, sweet, and honest.
What's Happening to Grandpa meets Up in this tender, sensitive picture book that gently explains the memory loss associated with aging and diseases such as Alzheimer's.
James's Grandpa has the best balloons because he has the best memories. He has balloons showing Dad when he was young and Grandma when they were married. Grandpa has balloons about camping and Aunt Nelle's poor cow. Grandpa also has a silver balloon filled with the memory of a fishing trip he and James took together.
But when Grandpa's balloons begin to float away, James is heartbroken.…
A Doll for Grandma shows the love between a grandmother and granddaughter.
Kiera loves spending time with Grandma. They play dress-up, paint their nails, make molasses cookies, and picnic with Kiera’s doll. Over time, Grandma changed. She became forgetful, misplaced items, and could no longer live at home.
When Kiera visited Grandma at the memory care home, Grandma was different. She rarely smiled. She said odd things and thought Kiera was her childhood friend. Kiera found a way to connect with Grandma by giving her a doll. Grandma and Kiera played with their dolls, and they ate molasses cookies together.
This story reminds us that when a loved one loses their memory and their personality changes, there are ways to connect, share happy times, and make new memories. (An article titled "Helping Children Understand Alzheimer’s Disease" by Judy Cornish at the end of the story is helpful in explaining memory loss.)
Kiera loves spending time with her grandma. They play dress up. They paint their nails. They make cookies for picnics with Kiera's doll. But then Grandma starts to change. She starts misplacing items and forgetting how to do everyday tasks. Soon she has to move out of her home into a memory-care center for people with Alzheimer's. She starts calling Kiera by a different name. Then Kiera has an idea and finds a new way to enjoy time with her Grandma.
A Doll for Grandma poignantly and sensitively tells the story of a girl's empathy and kindness in the face…
Granny Can’t Remember Me is told through the child’s eyes. Six-year-old Joey talks about having two grandmas, one who lives in Florida, and one who lives a few blocks away.
His nearby Granny doesn’t remember him, but she does remember stories of when she was young, and when his mother was a child. Joey loves hearing her stories, and playing cards with her. He loves Granny and knows deep down that she loves him, too.
This story was written by a doctor whose mother and father-in-law both had Alzheimer’s. As I read it, I was reminded of my aunt who also had Alzheimer’s. She regaled me with tales of her youth but had no memories of her present. Children will relate to this story as it’s told from a child’s point of view.
Granny Can’t Remember Me is a lighthearted picture book about Alzheimer’s disease and dementia told from the perspective of a six-year-old boy, appropriate for children in preschool through early elementary school (ages 3 – 8). Granny can’t remember that Joey likes soccer and rockets and dogs. Granny can’t remember much of anything. But with Granny’s stories of her Three Best Days, Joey knows she loves him just the same.Alzheimer’s disease is more and more common, and many young children experience this sometimes scary and sad family situation. Granny Can’t Remember Me shows a boy’s acceptance and love for his grandmother…
This is both a children’s story and a guide to Alzheimer’s. The child, Mathew, tells the story.
He begins with all the fun things he and his grandma do when he visits, walking in the backyard, eating butterscotch candy, listening to the birds. As time passes, Grandma grows forgetful. She calls Mathew by his dad’s name. She stays indoors more and has a caregiver. Mathew’s parents and a nurse explain the changes happening to his grandma. Mathew learns how to talk to her. They look at pictures and Mathew tells the stories that she told him.
This book is an excellent source for explaining Alzheimer’s and memory loss to a child. I love how it gives examples on ways to communicate with someone who has this disease.
In Grandma and Me, Beatrice and Mary Ann combine their years of clinical experience to create a truly engaging, yet informative book for young children on the topics of Alzheimer's and dementia. The beautiful artwork will capture children's attention, bring them into the story, and help them return on their own. Grandma and Me provides a gentle, yet age appropriate description of Alzheimer's disease, while providing tools that helps children continue to have a relationship with their loved one despite the disease. Grandma and Me addresses a difficult topic with love and understanding and provides the tools for children to…
Ice Cream with Grandpa is about the love between a child and his Grandpa.
The child tells the story beginning with the first time his Grandpa gave him ice cream. Their love of ice cream bonds them, but they also enjoy gardening, and walks in the park. When Grandpa moves to an apartment, it took some adjustment. What helped was the ice cream parlor nearby. Grandpa eventually goes into a memory care home.
The child fears Grandpa won’t remember him. His mom explains that Grandpa is still Grandpa. They can still enjoy spending time together. On Grandpa’s last day in hospice, they eat ice cream. Grandpa passes, but the child continues to remember their love each time he eats ice cream.
This story moved me so much that I cried. I love that this book includes a Guide for Parents and Caregivers: Tips for Talking with Children about Dementia, Hospice, Death and Grief by Diane Synder Cowan, MA, MT-BC CHPCA.
After his beloved grandpa's health declines and he receives a diagnosis of dementia, a grandson must navigate the changes in their relationship. Through it all, he learns that Grandpa is still Grandpa, and their bond deepens and sweetens through a shared love of ice cream.
Ice Cream with Grandpa is a loving, tender picture book that gently explores the topics of dementia, aging, and loss. Written from a child's point of view, it chronicles the changes in their relationship as his grandpa moves to assisted living, then memory care, and eventually hospice.
For decades I have volunteered in different capacities, helping the hurting and those living on the margins by tutoring and teaching literacy to the formally incarcerated or homeless, teaching parenting in a maximum-security jail, and teaching ESL to resettled immigrants. Because my own suburban father fell into homelessness at the end of his life due to depression, job losses, divorce, and more, I feel tremendous compassion for anyone in this situation. And as the mother of four grown sons, we filled our home with books—especially books that taught compassion so our sons would grow into men with big hearts towards others. I believe we succeeded.
Eleven-year-old Sierra just wants a normal life. After her military mother returns from the war overseas, the two hop from home to homelessness while Sierra tries to help her mom through the throes of PTSD.
When they end up at a shelter for women and children, Sierra is even more aware of what her life is not. The kind couple who run the shelter, Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin, attempt to show her parental love as she faces the uncertainties of her mom’s emotional health and the challenges of being the brand-new poor kid in middle school. The longer she stays at the shelter, the more Sierra realizes she may have to face an impossible choice as she redefines home.
Eleven-year-old Sierra just wants a normal life. After her military mother returns from the war overseas, the two hop from home to homelessness while Sierra tries to help her mom through the throes of PTSD.
When they end up at a shelter for women and children, Sierra is even more aware of what her life is not. The kind couple who run the shelter, Mr. and Mrs. Goodwin, attempt to show her parental love as she faces the uncertainties of her mom’s emotional health and the challenges of being the brand-new…
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