Home Planning for your Later Years

Home Planning for your Later Years (American)William K. Wasch

If you are just on the edge of needing to make a decision about senior housing, this is the book to use. It has lots of checklists and questionnaires that will direct you to the best solution for you individually. It also outlines how to follow through on the decisions you make, whether that would be modifying your own home or looking for a more suitable residence. (American)

The Accessible Home - Updating your Home for Changing Physical Needs

The Accessible Home – Updating your Home for Changing Physical Needs (American)Creative Publishing International

Think how-to book! For all of you who love pictures that show exactly how to execute a task, this book is for you. It goes over all the basic modifications a house would need to be considered barrier free, but does so with nice, glossy pictures that are very helpful. Definitely a great resource for anyone ready to take on a big job, or to knowledgeably discuss with a contractor what you want!

Elderhouse - Planning Your Best Home Ever

ELDERHOUSE – Planning Your Best Home EverBy Adelaide Altman

Written from a designer’s standpoint, this book not only lays out the basics for designing with the senior in mind, but comes at it from an aesthetic viewpoint. You will not compromise beauty and creativity for necessity if you follow her tips. She walks through the entire house room by room pinpointing the points of concern, addressing them, and then creatively solving the problem for a livable house you can age well in. Although this book has been around for awhile, a great deal of the information is still current, and the ideas are all very usable.

The Caregiver's Essential Handbook

The Caregiver’s Essential HandbookBy Sasha Carr and Sandra Choron

Eldercare 911

Eldercare 911: The Caregiver’s Complete Handbook for Making DecisionsBy Susan Beerman and Judith Rappaport-Musson

This book is exactly that – a complete handbook. It covers any possible decision you will be facing and outlines your choices. It is clearly written, and the index is well layed out so that it is a resource book you will reference continually. Once you are in the stage of needing to make decisions for yourself or your family member related to aging, you will want to keep this book on your bedside table as a constant source of information to all those nagging questions you'll have in the middle of the night.

Still Alice

Still AliceBy Lisa Genova

I was a little apprehensive about reading Still Alice, given that you know it will have a sad ending, based on the nature of the topic. It is a fictional novel that takes you on a path of a woman who is diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s in her mid 50’s. Alice is a professor at an Ivy League University, who recognizes that she is facing a debilitating disease that will take away her sense of self that she has worked hard at building up over the past few decades. What I wasn’t expecting from this novel, is the strength of family that surrounds Alice. Each family member is challenged to accept Alice’s diagnosis. It is a startlingly true synopsis of the journey a family faces with this disease. It challenges your understanding of those coping with the illness, and puts a face to the disease named Alzheimer’s.