Home and Family Books

My Mother has terminal Cancer and my Father is taking care of her at home. This book has been been a great guide and reference for her care. My Mother does not have Alzheimers but my Father and our family are encountering all the care issues that a family must address when caring for a terminally ill family member at home.

This book has seemingly all the information that you need to be a successful caregiver for a loved one with Alzheimer's. It is written in a very direct style. It addresses very specific solutions to the problems that occur as the various stages of the disease progress. I took care of my mother before I read this book and I could have used the advice here. I would not have had to reinvent the wheel, so to speak. The book acknowledges, but does not dwell on the emotional difficulties a caregiver faces, but since it offers concrete solutions to all kinds of problems, using it as a reference can make the care giving experience that much easier. Keep this one on the shelf, you'll refer to it often.

It has a lot of useful information and wonderful perspective in dealing with a loved one with Alzheimer's. I can already see application and things we can do better for my mother-in-law who lives with us. I just hope we can have half the compassion and patience that Frank shows in his book!

Magnificent work! It is bound to be helpful to anyone who has a family member or close friend with dementia. There is a multitude of practical points. Anyone will be struck by the author's compassion and dedication to his wife. It is also good that the author admits how the process is so trying.

This book is a classic in its field. If you have ever known anyone with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) or have worried if you will , at some future or near date, get it yourself or are mildly interested in what it is all about - this is a must book. Geared to the lay population (and professionals can learn a lot from it too) it is a fast, easy read chock full of information offered up on an appetizing way for a subject that we all want to distance ourselves from - but cannot and should not. Offering direct, hands-on hints to family members, it is a concrete guide that no other book I know of has provided. As two professionals who have specialized in the field of aging, few in psychology do, teach it and write about it, we suggest it to all our students and family members who come to us in despair and leave with hope. Dr. Lenore Powell has given us all a gift. We owe her much thanks. Marcella Bakur Weiner, Ph.D. and William Weiner, Ph.D.

This book is a classic in its field. If you have ever known anyone with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) or have worried if you will , at some future or near date, get it yourself or are mildly interested in what it is all about - this is a must book. Geared to the lay population (and professionals can learn a lot from it too) it is a fast, easy read chock full of information offered up on an appetizing way for a subject that we all want to distance ourselves from - but cannot and should not. Offering direct, hands-on hints to family members, it is a concrete guide that no other book I know of has provided. As two professionals who have specialized in the field of aging, few in psychology do, teach it and write about it, we suggest it to all our students and family members who come to us in despair and leave with hope. Dr. Lenore Powell has given us all a gift. We owe her much thanks. Marcella Bakur Weiner, Ph.D. and William Weiner, Ph.D.

This book is a classic in its field. If you have ever known anyone with Alzheimer's Disease (AD) or have worried if you will , at some future or near date, get it yourself or are mildly interested in what it is all about - this is a must book. Geared to the lay population (and professionals can learn a lot from it too) it is a fast, easy read chock full of information offered up on an appetizing way for a subject that we all want to distance ourselves from - but cannot and should not. Offering direct, hands-on hints to family members, it is a concrete guide that no other book I know of has provided. As two professionals who have specialized in the field of aging, few in psychology do, teach it and write about it, we suggest it to all our students and family members who come to us in despair and leave with hope. Dr. Lenore Powell has given us all a gift. We owe her much thanks. Marcella Bakur Weiner, Ph.D. and William Weiner, Ph.D.

I liked this book because it addresses the emotional devastation of Alzheimers as well as the physical, legal, and domestic arrangements. There is an entire chapter devoted to anger, another to depression, and another to fear. I found this to be right on target.

This guide is very practical and deals with all aspects of eldercare and caring to the caregiver. I highly recommend it.

My brother and I take care of my eighty-year-old mother. She has
diabetic neuropathy and can't walk. But she's a good kid and
we take care of her. This book has helped. Although the object of the book at first seems to be to develop a care plan; it really is a book of primary skills that you need in caregiving.
The book is best because you are not overwhelmed with 465 ways
to help your loved one. This is a primary and basic skills book.
Buy this book if you are new at caregiving and don't know where to start. Because the American Medical Associarion wrote it, I imagine that it would be good for all caregivers to buy it. I just love this book. It's like a Boy Scout manual. It's user-friendly for your brain. And sometimes simplicity can do more good that needless complications and theories. Thank you and I wish you luck.

This book is a must-have for anyone responsible for realistic decision making about his/her ability to provide health care at home, as well as an excellent how-to guide for those who accept the inherent responsibilities of the caregiver. I consider it the one "best" guide of those available to meet the needs of the growing number of home caregivers.

I am an Illinois legal aid attorney and owner of Southwest Medicals, an online medical supply and equipment business. I strongly recommend this book. Very informative, full of helpful tips and resources. This book helps make a challenging situation much easier. I also recommend The Comfort of Home, An Illustrated Step by Setp Guide for Caregivers, 2nd Edition, by Maria M Meyer.

I had to read and review this book for a class, and I thought it was great. I had not read any of the books referenced by Ms. Marcus, so it was difficult to tell how sucessfully she represented the authors, but thats really my problem, not hers. I would say that I don't like such heavy use of literary sources in these types of books, but it is usually because I haven't read the books.

I'm happy I chose this book to review, between the nasty review and its mention on the board, (and Ms. Marcus's rebuttal) this will be an easy book review to write.

In Apartment Stories, Sharon Marcus takes the reader on a stunning tour of the interior spaces of the nineteenth century novel. The views that Marcus offers are always exciting. Following her from behind as she weaves her way through dark regions of apartment houses is often exhilirating. Particularly pleasurable is the way she bounces around London. And although sometimes she seems to bend over to make her point, even this rewarding

In an elegantly written and persuasively argued volume, Sharon Marcus uses the idea of the apartment building as a tool to comb out two sets of terms that tend to clump together in discussions about the 19th century: man=city=public, woman=home=private. In a work made pleasurable to the general reader through her clear and careful writing and her judicious use of footnotes, Marcus proposes a world of 19th century men, women, homes, and cities, that interact in more messy and interesting ways than we've learned to expect. I enjoyed it thoroughly.

There has been a recent interest in theories that undermine the undertakings of the Enlightenment and Modernism toward presenting a world made up of clear definitions and distinctions. This trend has thrown light upon those cultures and periods of history previously dismissed as irrational, decadent, or retrogressive. Further, owing to Post-Structuralist interests in language, scholars have increasingly turned towards realist novels and literature from the period being studied to unearth peculiar social environments that have remained concealed in the purely formal analyses of historical accounts.

Sharon Marcus in Apartment Stories identifies the novel as a significant mirror of everyday life. Literary criticism and cultural history, for Marcus, are intertwined disciplines that feed on each other. In Apartment Stories she uses an analysis of the nineteenth-century realist novel to illuminate a discourse about (not `on') apartment houses of the time. Employing texts that she calls `atypical', as a heuristic device for exploring the range and complexity of nineteenth century debates on domesticity and urbanism, Marcus sets herself the ambitious task of questioning conventional conceptions of the distinctions of private and public, interior and exterior, as well as masculine and feminine. She probes the text not only in terms of seeking social and physical implications of the described spaces but also in terms of the manner in which the narration itself inscribes spatial relations and establishes zones as exterior and interior, private and public, mobile and fixed.

Apartment Stories is divided into three parts. The first part, "Open Houses", discusses the apartment house as a space that refutes readability as a private, opaque, and interior space. The second part, "The City and the Domestic Ideal", discusses the cultural preference for the single-family house over the lodging houses (that resembled apartment houses) of Londoners. The third and concluding part, "Interiorization and its Discontents", deals with Paris during the Second Empire. The author claims that Paris became interiorized after 1850 and thereby challenges the established interpretation of the Second Empire Paris as one of spectacle, flânerie, and circulation. She also questions the famous notion of the Goncourt brothers that "the interior is going to die. Life threatens to become more public". Marcus, in view of the Parisian apartment house, explicates the impossibility of ever fully interiorizing the home.

Sharon Marcus's Apartment Stories provides interesting insights into the world of the bourgeois in nineteenth century Paris- though her ideas are not always convincing and not always substantiated with documentation. Her elaborate endnotes that occupy 81 pages at the rear of the book fail to provide the convincing evidence that more architectural drawings and photographs might. The book leaves the readers constantly searching through the text for `real' images of the physical character of the apartment houses to which they may correspond the analysis of the novel. In the absence of such documentation, the author herself feels the need to stop every now and then in order to summarize and locate within the overall scheme of the book what she had just written (which is also what makes the writing of the book-review easier). These impediments that occlude the understanding of her new insights are further assisted by what could be considered a methodological oversight. Her structure of discussions of the interior and exterior space rest upon the individual descriptions of interior and exterior space. The discussion does not flow from one to the other and that, I feel, strengthens the distinction between the two. A discussion of the in-between transition spaces, apart from perhaps the character of the portière, between the street and the house, that one would expect in a discussion of interior and exterior spaces, is also absent.

Marcus works from an impressive bibliography, one that partially compensates for her deficiencies in documentation and illustration. Apart from a slight error in quoting the publication date of James Stevens Curl's The Victorian Celebration of Death as 1872 instead of 1972, the bibliography, along with the book, becomes a wonderful resource for any scholarly study of nineteenth century France and England in the fields of feminist theory and criticism, geography, urban studies, architectural history, literary criticism, and interdisciplinary research on everyday life.

I am currently in the process of researching and selecting long-term living arrangements for my mother, who will be leaving her home of 43 years and moving across the country and has entrusted me to pick her new residence. I feel the weight of that responsibility and want to be sure that she is safe, happy, and well cared for, and able to remain independent as long and as well as her condition permits. Baum has provided great insight into questions we must ask and assurances we must get in writing. His documentation of the journey has helped me pay special attention as similar experiences arise. And further, Baum suggests that we take his experience and think about how we want our last years to be spent. Well written and not preachy, with a good checklist to apply before final decisions have been made. I am thankful to have found this book before completing our search, and have recommended it to others.

Every older person, especially those living alone, and their family members should read this book. Anyone who is considering an assisted living situation for a parent will learn invaluable information.

First off, this is the only book that I have seen about this topic that is not written by an insider with a vested interest in promoting assisted living facilities, care management, Alzheimer's facilities, or the like. Many books point you to resources that you could find in an hour or less on the Internet. This is so much more thoughtful. The author provides a self-reflective account of his own journey with his mother in trying to work out the best individualized arrangements for and with her. It is not one of these simplistic "my mother is your mother -and what you and your mother will face." An added plus is that he gives a lot of thoughtful attention to the promise and limitations of current options and newer models of aging.It is a very nice book that bridges the gap between public/social policies for the aging and personal experience. Books like this are unusual. I tend to shun books that tilt to either narcissistically, personal stories or heavily annotated accounts. Hopefully, this book will help mobilize readers to think that creative, humanistic solutions are possible.

This is a very good book for anyone who has to put their parent in an Assisted Living Facility, even if you live close to your parent.

You can tell Dan always had his mother's over-all well-being at the center of his decisions. The future is so uncertain, this is a good book to read as Dan tells of his personal experience with their choice of ALF.

Sharing Ida's experience has helped me when it came time to put my own Mother in an ALF in Dec 2006. My sister, Mom & I visited various ALF's, and Mom chose the one she liked best. My sister and I made sure it will give her the support she will need when her health will require more assistance. Mom has early-stages of Alzheimer's; physically she is fine, but mentally, she cannot remember current events.

Dan covers every aspect of life in an ALF, his experience with the good parts and the bad. All of this knowledge is best found out before-hand, so you are more prepared for what can happen in the future. Due to his insight, I hope to be able to give Mom a comfortable and well-assisted life.

Barbara

Well maybe not exactly nigh, and maybe not exactly the end...but certainly some changes are lurching our way as the current economic meltdown rains on our way-complicated, stressed-out, nature-deficient parade. Skyhorse called it right by calling this book back into print--and under editor Abigail Gehring's guiding hand the book has been enriched with new graphics and some new content (including internet referrals to information sources.)
Reading this book opens a window into a lifestyle that you've been missing at the core of your being...and opens the door to get you into it.

The book is a lot like the old, only with updated information, and more things have been added to it.

This book was published twice by Reader's Digest when there wasn't much demand for it. Skyhorse Publishing took it over and made enough "significant changes" to establish their own copyright over it. But the changes are just different pictures and rearranged pages!

This book is just about to come into its own due to the demise of oil and the Dollar. These are skills the general population must relearn. But the pre-oil generations are all gone.

This is simply the best reference book for self sufficient country living ever, bar none. From building to growing to conserving to preserving to raising animals to cooking... recreation, knitting, herbs, knots, quilting, cider, canoeing, candle making, soaps, blacksmithing, not to mention beer and wine making; and everything in between and extending from both ends - this book has it all. The table of contents only touches on what's contained. If you can think of it, this book probably has it. It is *the* encyclopedia of living the "basics."

At the end of the movie adaptation of H.G.Wells classic "The Time Machine", the main character escapes to the future where humanity has forgotten all basic knowledge and skills. The friends that he leaves behind discover that he has taken only three books with him, and we're left to wonderingly consider which three - and which three we might bring. This book would be one of my three. After all, what culture could survive long without beer, smoked meats, cheese and wine?

As much as we tend to "tip-toe" around end-of-life matters with family and friends, Parker however takes the reader on a warm and touching journey with "loud and clear" steps about what she calls, "The Other Side of Through." Throughout the book, you can't help but reflect on your life situation wherever you may be on life's timeline. It is a must-read for those thousands of "baby boomers" like me because 1. We are entering that phase of our life where, quite frankly, we begin to seriously think about our own mortality and all that that means, and 2. Many of us have had to be, or will face the very likely possibility of being, a care-giver to a loved one. "Being Dead Right" answers so many questions on the issues of hospice care almost from A-Z and is told in a very readable, informative and humane way. In her book, Parker indeed lets full sun shine on a topic long lain hid. Excellent job.

Let's face it: Becoming Dead Right is a startling use of double entendre. It grew on me as a reader, since ultimately there's no time that straight talk is more required than at, and about, end of life. Placing judgement aside, "wrong" ways of dying have detrimental effects on patient-families; "right" ways of dying make end days as humane as can be, for both the dying and their survivors.

Humaneness is the critical quality that is often misplaced or absent from critical care. Parker's humanity is palpable. Every school principal must imbue it (even if half her kids may go to their own graves in denial of their school principal's humanity), so it's no surprise she would manifest it as a hospice worker and writer.

Yet I was surprised, and touched, and bolstered. As a writer on end-of-life matters, I expect others who write on dying and death to do so with great dignity, empathy, and poise. The subject requires it. So why my surprise? I think it stems from several directions.
- Poetry. If inuendo has no place in end-of-life conversations, and metaphor ignites understanding as it relieves duress, poetry occupies a middle ground. Parker's inclusion of personal poems throughout adds a a poignant, exploratory dimension to her narrative.
- Cultural mileu #1: Inside the Looking Glass. Reading messages that emanate from inside hospice differs from reading information about hospice. Parker gives us the real deal, distinct from intellectual abstraction (no matter how important the latter may be when the subject is end-of-life choices). Parker's "person-studies" help explain, in a very accessible manner, what hospice offers.
- Cultural mileu #2: Race. For those of us outside the black community, Becoming Dead Right offers a glimpse into the human fabric that makes Black America rich in ways that are intrinsic to their unique identity as a people. The glimpse arises naturally, through the telling. It's subtle, and probably unintentional--making this book all the more valuable.

And if Parker can help manifest her vision of Boomer Haven on a national scale, I'd queue up when it's my turn--even if I wasn't already predisposed.

-- Bart Windrum, author of Notes from the Waiting Room: Managing a Loved One's End-of-Life Hospitalization

This book was enlightning and a pleasure to read. I found it difficult to put down. Each of many patient related stories told was captivating and conveyed significant and often imperative messages. Comprehensive, insightful, empathetic, amusing, comforting and instructive are all applicable adjectives. Becoming Dead Right is a gift of sagacity to us all.

I really enjoyed the book, "Becoming Dead Right." The book was powerfully written and allowed the reader to feel the joys, frustrations, excitement and pain of the men and women in Hospice Care. My favorite part was the poems that were peppered in throughout the book that gave the book an extra special touch. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a book that puts a story and face with the people in Hospice Care.

Ben Franklin exemplifies one kind of American spirit. The historian Daniel Boorstin said that the greatness of America was in the small improvements it continually provided to everyday life, the spirit of invention. Ben Franklin built a lot of different kinds of better mousetraps, including bifocals, the postal service, and a whole way of thinking about improving the self day - by- day.
This Almanac is compiled in his spirit and contains many examples of his wisdom. It also is chocked full with practical advice for homemakers,and home- improvers.
Old Ben also had a sense of humor on occasion with his wisdom. "Fish and visitors smell after three days he told us" And when were in trouble we can always think of Ben's advice "Any port in a storm"
Some of the stuff here may seem corny , trite , boring . But different strokes for different folks as they say , and there is enough here for 'everyman' to get a little advice and a little
enjoyment of.
Happy Sunday, Monday ,Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday , Saturday.
And Gut Shabbos.

Excellent. Many practical suggestions and lots of sound advice.

This Book is great to read for anyone with an inspired mind, I love the fact that you can read one page, full of facts each day of the year. Highly recomended.

I'm surprised that no one has reviewed this book, since it's very useful and entertaining, easy to read, and inexpensive.

There's one page for each day of the year. On one side of each page are facts about that day (famous birthdays, events). At the top of the page is a quote from Benjamin Franklin on some principle (saving money, etc.) with some illustrative biographical information from Franklin's or somebody else's life. At the bottom is practical advice for the home and garden, from cooling the house to storing cheese (wrap in wax paper, not celophane, because the live cultures need to breath). It usually takes only a couple of minutes to read a page.

I've had the book on my kitchen table or in other place that you regularly visit for a few minutes every day. It's a well-edited and well-designed book and reasonably priced. I'm planning on giving copies as gifts because it's cheap and I can't imagine anybody not enjoying some aspect of it, either from the household hints, the principles, or the daily facts.

Benni and Victoria is a story that pulls you in and makes you want to find out what is going to happen next. The main character, Benni, is a foster child who has gone through many hardships. His thoughts and emotions reflect what many other foster children may feel. The story is imaginative and sends the message that each child has something special to offer. -Cynthia Miller Lovell, author of The Star: A story to help young children understand foster care, and Questions & Activities for The Star: A handbook for foster parents

I read this several times and each time found more facets of little Benni, who endures many hardships but emerges a survivor. I read it to my grandchildren and they both -- girl and boy-- enjoyed the story of little Benni and his ghost friend, Victoria. They were delighted with the end. --- Eileen Hehl

I'm a teacher who read BENNI & VICTORIA to my fifth grade class last spring. Their response was so strong that I intend to read it to this year's class, too. My class loved BENNI & VICTORIA. Every day the book was the highlight of their day, and they begged for me to read more. They liked the illustrations, too. Here are some of their comments: I think Mrs. Aust should write Benny and Victoria II! Jason L. This book was the best book I ever read in my life. My class loved the book. Robert C. BENNI & VICTORIA was a really sad book, but also it made you think life isn't always peaches and cream and doesn't always go your way. Kate A. I liked it when he got in a foster home. Now he has a sister. Danielle P. I loved (BENNI & VICTORIA) so much. I loved the characters. They were cool. Robert K. Benni is a very good boy and he helped Victoria very much. I really like BENNI & VICTORIA. Rodrigo D. I think Benny and Victoria is a great book for all ages. Cai

BENNI & VICTORIA: Friends Through Time tells the story that so many abused and neglected children have lived. I was pleasantly surprised by the charm this book held, by my hesitancy to put it down, and by the sensitivity and accuracy with which Patricia Aust wrote of the children's feelings and experiences. I was reminded that children thrive on mystery, magic and intrigue and are much better able to swallow the truth when surrounded by a well-crafted tale. This book can assist children in exploring their thoughts and feelings and further to affirm that a friendship can help soften difficult times. Reviewed in THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER, Fall 1997, by Molly Faulkner, RN, LISW, Clinical Social Worker, Programs for Children and Adolescents at the University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM.

This cookbook has become a staple in my already-large cookbook collection. I have used this book many times to "lighten" up a family favorite dish, and have made many of the recipes contained here. The book is organized in the following categories: Getting to Know Good Nutrition, Mouth-Watering Main Dishes, Tempting Side Dishes, Enticing Desserts, and Refreshing Snacks.

Some of my family's favorites include: Beef Stroganoff, Spaghetti Pie, Fajitas, Scalloped Potatoes and Ham, Coq Au Vin, Chicken & Dumplings, Oven Fried Chicken, Chicken PotPie, Tuna Noodle Casserole, Quiche Lorraine, Macaroni & Cheese, No Fried Ice Milk, Creamy Coleslaw, German-Style Potato Salad, Caramel Rolls, Pumpkin Bars, Carrot Cake, and Heavenly Cheesecake,

The recipes try to offer lower sodium, fat, calories, and cholesterol than the original "family" favorites, without decreasing taste. My family could barely tell these were not the original versions, and I feel good lowering fat and sodium wherever I can. This cookbook may not offer many "gourmet" dishes, but it gives wonderful recipes for favorite recipes you thought you could not enjoy anymore because of the high fat/sodium/cholesterol content. Enjoy!

Family Favorites Made Lighter is a collection of over 100 family-friendly recipes that are practical, quick and delicious. These recipes are the same dishes your mother made -- made modern. The information on fat, cholesterol, and salt is accurate and helpful. These are the perfect transitional dishes for the family trying to change the way it eats. Our family has found many new favorites in this selection. A reliable source, even at the last minute! Highly recommended!

I have had this cook book for quite a long time now, and it is one of my most used books. It has all types of recipes, from appetizers to main meals to deserts. The recipes are not wild and extravagant, requiring trips to specialty gourmet stores; they are mostly recipes you are already familiar with, just made lighter. Try their version of sweet and sour pork, it is absolutely delicious! The banana bread is fantastic too - I've made that one so many times that my book just falls open to that page automatically.

Excellent cookbook with easy to prepare versions of entrees we all want to eat but don't know how to prepare without destroying our diets. Not only are these recipes quick and low-fat, but they allow for good-size portions and are filling. The recipes also use easy-to-find, ordinary ingredients, so you don't have to spend time hunting for things you've never heard of at the gourmet store. Worth the money!