100 books like Making Loss Matter

By David J. Wolpe,

Here are 100 books that Making Loss Matter fans have personally recommended if you like Making Loss Matter. Shepherd is a community of 12,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of Creating Moments of Joy Along the Alzheimer's Journey: A Guide for Families and Caregivers

Mary McDaniel Cail Author Of Dementia and the Church: Memory, Care, and Inclusion

From my list on books for dementia-friendly churches.

Why am I passionate about this?

I founded the All-Weather Friend, which is about helping friends get through difficult situations. My first book, Alzheimer’s: A Crash Course for Friends and Relatives, tells how to help people living with dementia. I’ve had hard times in my life—my husband’s brain tumor and suicide, my father’s dementia, infertility, miscarriage, my brother’s sudden death, and other things that flooded me with grief. But my life is filled with joy; I’ve learned that joy comes from God and from a compassionate connection with friends and people we love. I write and speak about “informed compassion.” I hope you’ll visit my website, where there’s a great dementia resource page with contributions by many readers.

Mary's book list on books for dementia-friendly churches

Mary McDaniel Cail Why did Mary love this book?

Moments of joy are often all that can be had by people in the later stages of dementia when life is lived moment by forgotten moment. What people may not realize, though, is that while the memories of joyful moments (an ice cream cone, petting a dog, looking at pictures, taking a walk) may be quickly forgotten, the emotion of joy will linger.

Brackey tells us how to create moments of joy for our loved ones with dementia and that people with dementia have much to teach us about ourselves.

By Jolene Brackey,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Creating Moments of Joy Along the Alzheimer's Journey as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The beloved best seller has been revised and expanded for the fifth edition.

Jolene Brackey has a vision: that we will soon look beyond the challenges of Alzheimer's disease to focus more of our energies on creating moments of joy. When people have short-term memory loss, their lives are made up of moments. We are not able to create perfectly wonderful days for people with dementia or Alzheimer's, but we can create perfectly wonderful moments, moments that put a smile on their faces and a twinkle in their eyes. Five minutes later, they will not remember what we did or…


Book cover of Ministry with the Forgotten: Dementia through a Spiritual Lens

Mary McDaniel Cail Author Of Dementia and the Church: Memory, Care, and Inclusion

From my list on books for dementia-friendly churches.

Why am I passionate about this?

I founded the All-Weather Friend, which is about helping friends get through difficult situations. My first book, Alzheimer’s: A Crash Course for Friends and Relatives, tells how to help people living with dementia. I’ve had hard times in my life—my husband’s brain tumor and suicide, my father’s dementia, infertility, miscarriage, my brother’s sudden death, and other things that flooded me with grief. But my life is filled with joy; I’ve learned that joy comes from God and from a compassionate connection with friends and people we love. I write and speak about “informed compassion.” I hope you’ll visit my website, where there’s a great dementia resource page with contributions by many readers.

Mary's book list on books for dementia-friendly churches

Mary McDaniel Cail Why did Mary love this book?

The author, a retired bishop and professor emeritus at Duke Divinity School, has not only written this book to tell about his journey as a caregiver to his wife, who died of frontotemporal lobe dementia, but also provides (free of charge) a set of truly excellent companion videos churches can use to educate their congregations about dementia.

Carder writes about the transformation in his understanding of love as he learned new ways of relating to his wife, realizing that she, in her infirmity, had become his teacher about love.

By Kenneth L Carder,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Ministry with the Forgotten as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Dementia diseases represent a crisis of faith for many family members and congregations. Magnifying this crisis is the way people with dementia tend to be objectified by both medical and religious communities. They are recipients of treatment and projects for mission. Ministry is done to and for them rather than with them.

While acknowledging the devastation of dementia diseases, Ken Carder draws on his own experience as a caregiver, hospice chaplain, and pastoral practitioner to portray the gifts as well as the challenges accompanying dementia diseases. He confronts the deep personal and theological questions created by loving people with dementia…


Book cover of Partial View: An Alzheimer's Journal

Mary McDaniel Cail Author Of Dementia and the Church: Memory, Care, and Inclusion

From my list on books for dementia-friendly churches.

Why am I passionate about this?

I founded the All-Weather Friend, which is about helping friends get through difficult situations. My first book, Alzheimer’s: A Crash Course for Friends and Relatives, tells how to help people living with dementia. I’ve had hard times in my life—my husband’s brain tumor and suicide, my father’s dementia, infertility, miscarriage, my brother’s sudden death, and other things that flooded me with grief. But my life is filled with joy; I’ve learned that joy comes from God and from a compassionate connection with friends and people we love. I write and speak about “informed compassion.” I hope you’ll visit my website, where there’s a great dementia resource page with contributions by many readers.

Mary's book list on books for dementia-friendly churches

Mary McDaniel Cail Why did Mary love this book?

While there are many great memoirs about Alzheimer’s, this one is unique. It’s almost an adult picture book that quickly gives a realistic sense of what living with mid-stage Alzheimer’s is like.

Henderson, a former history professor, carried a tape recorder around with him, documenting his daily thoughts and struggles. Photographer Nancy Andrews made stunning black-and-white photos to accompany Henderson’s observations.

It takes little time to read Henderson’s book, but the understanding it conveys is remarkable. It may be hard to find since it is over 20 years old, but it’s worth the effort. 

By Cary Smith Henderson, Jackie Henderson Main, Nancy Andrews (photographer)

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Partial View as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Thoughtful book.


Book cover of Voices Of Alzheimer's: Courage, Humor, Hope, And Love In The Face Of Dementia

Mary McDaniel Cail Author Of Dementia and the Church: Memory, Care, and Inclusion

From my list on books for dementia-friendly churches.

Why am I passionate about this?

I founded the All-Weather Friend, which is about helping friends get through difficult situations. My first book, Alzheimer’s: A Crash Course for Friends and Relatives, tells how to help people living with dementia. I’ve had hard times in my life—my husband’s brain tumor and suicide, my father’s dementia, infertility, miscarriage, my brother’s sudden death, and other things that flooded me with grief. But my life is filled with joy; I’ve learned that joy comes from God and from a compassionate connection with friends and people we love. I write and speak about “informed compassion.” I hope you’ll visit my website, where there’s a great dementia resource page with contributions by many readers.

Mary's book list on books for dementia-friendly churches

Mary McDaniel Cail Why did Mary love this book?

Reading this book is like sitting in on a support group. It’s a collection of quotes about living with dementia from people who are doing just that.

I love it for churches starting a memory ministry because these quotes could be quickly read aloud in worship services, as a “ministry moment,” or read round-robin style in groups beginning to learn about dementia.

I like the collection of many voices speaking out candidly and poignantly about this difficult journey. 

By Betsy Peterson,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Voices Of Alzheimer's as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Betsy Peterson spent fourteen years caring for her husband who was suffering from dementia, an experience that put her in touch with others inside the struggle to have or to care for someone with the disease. A combination of contributions from patients, their families, friends, and caregivers, Voices of Alzheimer's gathers the poignant stories, funny quotes, and priceless encouragement that Peterson heard and that helped her along the way. Capturing the many dimensions of the Alzheimer experience-the challenges, the struggles, the humour, and even the rewards-a Voices presents a varied, and realistic, look at what it's like to be affected…


Book cover of Jewish Wisdom for Growing Older: Finding Your Grit and Grace Beyond Midlife

Susan H. McFadden Author Of Dementia-Friendly Communities: Why We Need Them and How We Can Create Them

From my list on innovative approaches to living with dementia.

Why am I passionate about this?

I have been teaching college students about aging since I was in my late 20s. The audacity! Now that I am officially in the “young-old” category I used to describe to my students, I more fully appreciate the social constructions of aging that affect elders, the medical conditions that can derail plans for “a good old age,” and the challenges we all face in attempting to live with meaning and purpose as we grow older. In addition to teaching, writing about, and researching various aspects of aging, especially aging with various type of dementia, my work has addressed the positive and negative ways religious faith can shape how people cope with aging.

Susan's book list on innovative approaches to living with dementia

Susan H. McFadden Why did Susan love this book?

Rabbi Dayle Friedman’s wisdom about aging can be appreciated by people of all religions and no religion. Her honest engagement with some of the most difficult issues aging persons face leaves readers with hope rather than despair. Her many years as a chaplain for people living in long-term care with dementia undergird her suggestions on how to make sense of what she calls “dementia’s brokenness”. She concludes each chapter with a spiritual practice readers can employ to engage more deeply with the chapter’s topics, and also at the end of each chapter, she offers readers a blessing for their own efforts to flourish as they age.  

By Dayle A. Friedman,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Jewish Wisdom for Growing Older as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Growing Older Can Be a Time of Growing in Depth and Wisdom

"My sense is that the whole journey beyond midlife is a mysterious blend of light and dark, wholeness and fragility…. We have a chance beyond midlife to become the person we were truly meant to be. We can draw on everything we have experienced so far to contribute to the people around us and the wider world, and to find strength and resilience amid the challenges."
―from the Introduction

Whether you are fifty-five or seventy-five, approaching retirement or age one hundred, growing older brings remarkable opportunities but often…


Book cover of Somebody Stole My Iron: A Family Memoir of Dementia

Ann Campanella Author Of Motherhood: Lost and Found: A memoir

From my list on inspiring memoirs about Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

Why am I passionate about this?

An author of a caregiving memoir myself, I’m also a former magazine and newspaper editor who has had the opportunity to read and write about many topics. For the past five years, I have been a manager and director of AlzAuthors, an online global organization that offers the world’s most comprehensive collection of books and blogs on Alzheimer’s and dementia. To say I have done a lot of reading on this subject is an understatement. I’ve been honored to work with so many talented and big-hearted authors who share their Alzheimer’s and dementia experiences. Being immersed in the Alzheimer’s world through AlzAuthors has given me insight into many of the best memoirs on this subject.   

Ann's book list on inspiring memoirs about Alzheimer’s and Dementia

Ann Campanella Why did Ann love this book?

Honest and humble, Vicki Tapia shares her story in Somebody Stole My Iron of caring for both parents at the same time as they descend into dementia. Despite her mother's strong personality and her father's somewhat distant and oblivious nature, Vicki reveals the real issues of loving parents – particularly her mother – who have challenging personalities. Vicki’s loyalty in the midst of difficulty is inspiring. She also shares dementia caregiving tips at the end of each chapter, which provide comfort and affirmation for others caring for aging parents. 

By Vicki Tapia,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Somebody Stole My Iron as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Navigating the waters of dementia can be frightening, unleashing a myriad of emotions for everyone involved. After Vicki Tapia's mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, followed closely by her father with Parkinson's disease-related dementia, she struggled to find practical, helpful information to light her way. Somebody Stole My Iron began as a diary to help her cope, but emerged as a road map for others. It offers a glimpse into her family's life as they rode the waves of dementia, sometimes sailing, other times capsizing. This engaging memoir offers useful information from experts within the field of Alzheimer's research, personal…


Book cover of Ice Cream with Grandpa: A Loving Story for Kids About Alzheimer's & Dementia

Debra Daugherty Author Of The Memory Jar

From my list on helping children understand memory loss.

Why am I passionate about this?

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.

Debra's book list on helping children understand memory loss

Debra Daugherty Why did Debra love this book?

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,…

By Laura Smetana, Elisabete B P de Moraes (illustrator),

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Ice Cream with Grandpa as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

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.

Based on the author's own experience with her…


Book cover of Alzheimer's Daughter

Ann Campanella Author Of Motherhood: Lost and Found: A memoir

From my list on inspiring memoirs about Alzheimer’s and Dementia.

Why am I passionate about this?

An author of a caregiving memoir myself, I’m also a former magazine and newspaper editor who has had the opportunity to read and write about many topics. For the past five years, I have been a manager and director of AlzAuthors, an online global organization that offers the world’s most comprehensive collection of books and blogs on Alzheimer’s and dementia. To say I have done a lot of reading on this subject is an understatement. I’ve been honored to work with so many talented and big-hearted authors who share their Alzheimer’s and dementia experiences. Being immersed in the Alzheimer’s world through AlzAuthors has given me insight into many of the best memoirs on this subject.   

Ann's book list on inspiring memoirs about Alzheimer’s and Dementia

Ann Campanella Why did Ann love this book?

I can’t even imagine having both parents diagnosed with Alzheimer’s on the same day. But Jean Lee handles this situation with grace and devotion. Through her parents’ letters, she shares their love story. Ed and Ibby have a beautiful bond as do their daughters, yet the girls face a challenging road of caregiving that is sad, humorous, and touching, but always a model for how to love well. In Jean’s book, she casts a spell of nostalgia, faith, and whimsy, pulling the reader into a circle of intimacy. 

By Jean Lee,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Alzheimer's Daughter as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What would you do if both parents were diagnosed with Alzheimer’s?At the time of their diagnosis, Ed Church struggles to his feet, yelling, “How dare you use the A. word with me,” while Ibby wags her finger at the doctor scolding, “Shame on you.”They protect each other, Ibby by asserting, “We’re not leaving our home,” and Ed reassuring, “We’re just fine.”About his driving Ed defends, “I’m an excellent driver, I’ve never had an accident.” When their daughter, Rosie, finds dings in Ed’s car, he dismisses, “Someone must have bumped into me.”After Rosie moves them to assisted living, convinced they are…


Book cover of The Nostalgia Factory: Memory, Time and Ageing

Nicci Gerrard Author Of The Last Ocean: What Dementia Teaches Us about Love

From my list on explore dementia and the mystery of the human mind.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a novelist, a journalist, a humanist celebrant, and coauthor with my husband of the best-selling Nicci French thrillers. Witnessing my father’s dementia and his slow-motion dying radically transformed the way I think about what it is to be human. In 2014, I founded John’s Campaign which seeks to make the care of those who are vulnerable and powerless more compassionate, and which is now a national movement in the UK. In 2016, I won the Orwell Prize for Journalism for ‘exposing Britain’s social evils' in the pieces I wrote exploring the nature of dementia.

Nicci's book list on explore dementia and the mystery of the human mind

Nicci Gerrard Why did Nicci love this book?

Drowse Draaisma is a memory specialist, and this lucid, eloquent and humorous book celebrates the rich and fruitful pleasures of memory in later life (and takes the sting out of the natural forgetfulness that comes as we grow older). It combines science, psychology, anecdotes, advice, and it is above all a work of spirit and optimism.  

By Douwe Draaisma,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Nostalgia Factory as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

With a storyteller's gift and a scientist's insights, Draaisma celebrates the unique pleasures of the aging memory

You cannot call to mind the name of a man you have known for 30 years. You walk into a room and forget what you came for. What is the name of that famous film you've watched so many times? These are common experiences, and as we grow older we tend to worry about these lapses. Is our memory failing? Is it dementia? Douwe Draaisma, a renowned memory specialist, here focuses on memory in later life. Writing with eloquence and humor, he explains…


Book cover of Blue Hydrangeas

Vicki Tapia Author Of Somebody Stole My Iron: A Family Memoir of Dementia

From my list on Alzheimer’s and dementia caregiving stories.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a caregiver who became an author. Both my parents had dementia. I found few books written from a personal perspective to give me guidance, so the journal I kept ultimately became the book I wished I could have read during our dementia journey. The journey didn’t end for me with the death of my parents. It led me to form a non-profit with two other dementia authors. This passion project has become a global community of authors who have written about Alzheimer’s and dementia from personal experience. Now more than 300 strong, we provide quality resources for caregivers and others concerned about dementia. Learn more at AlzAuthors.com.

Vicki's book list on Alzheimer’s and dementia caregiving stories

Vicki Tapia Why did Vicki love this book?

I was drawn in by Marianne Sciucco’s novel about a man caring for his wife with Alzheimer’s. It’s a love story between a long-married couple, one of whom has dementia. It’s about a husband’s determination to honor his wife’s request to stay in their home, even though his own health is failing. It’s about the magic of the day they “escape.” I loved this book because it showed me that love endures despite dementia; despite what life throws our way. 

By Marianne Sciucco,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Blue Hydrangeas as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

What if the person who knew you best and loved you most forgot your face, and couldn't remember your name? The PromiseA care facility is everyone's solution for what to do about Sara, but her husband, Jack, can't bear to live without her. He is committed to saving his marriage, his wife, and their life together from the devastation of Alzheimer’s disease. He and Sara retired years ago to the house of their dreams, and operated it as a Cape Cod bed and breakfast named Blue Hydrangeas. Jack has made an impossible promise: He and Sara will stay together in…


Book cover of Creating Moments of Joy Along the Alzheimer's Journey: A Guide for Families and Caregivers
Book cover of Ministry with the Forgotten: Dementia through a Spiritual Lens
Book cover of Partial View: An Alzheimer's Journal

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