Beaver Tales: a Story to Help Children Better Understand Dementia and Alzheimer’s Disease. H.C. MacArthur, illustrated by Anna Koot, $14.25 (ages 4-9)

From the first signs that showed Howard something about his Grandpa was changing, he chooses to learn about Grandpa’s problem and how to help him.

Caregiver's Guide for Canadians. Rick Lauber, $17.95

What should you do as your mother or father grows older and needs more assistance? When a parent's health begins to fail, adult children are often left scrambling to help, balance their other obligations and frequently struggling to cope with the stress of it all.

THE CAREGIVER'S GUIDE FOR CANADIANS will provide you with valuable tips and advice to help you provide good eldercare while balancing all the demands on your time. It provides practical advice and encouragement to help you care for elders in need, and to ensure you are providing the best care possible for your loved one.

Caring for Your Parents: the Complete Family Guide. Hugh Delehanty & Elinor Ginzler, $15.50

CARING FOR YOUR PARENTS addresses every aspect of looking after loved ones — without losing sight of yourself. Includes practical ideas on managing sibling conflict, financial planning and care, health care and end-of-life directives.

The Complete Eldercare Planner: Where to Start, What Questions to Ask and How to Find Help. Joy Loverde, $22.95

Comprehensive and detailed, this practical book provides tips on prioritizing caregiving tasks, balancing work and family responsibilities, navigating the complex maze of eldercare services along with downloadable forms, checklists, worksheets and action plans.

Early Psychosocial Interventions in Dementia: Evidence-Based Practice. Edited by Esme Moniz-Cook & Jill Manthorpe, $34.95

For the increasing number of people diagnosed with dementia each year, treatment in the early stages can make a significant difference to their quality of life. This book provides examples of psychosocial interventions: taking into consideration the individual, social and environmental aspects of the person's life.

It looks at ways of providing support at the time of diagnosis and goes on to explore a variety of interventions and services for the treatment of early dementia. The contributors describe interventions for both psychological and practical problems with case examples such as memory support groups, art therapies and assistive technologies for use in the home.

The Eldercare Handbook: Difficult Choices, Compassionate Solutions. Stella Mora Henry, $21.99

In this comprehensive and accessible guide, readers navigate the daunting logistics and powerful emotions of making care decisions for an elderly parent or loved one.

Eldercare 911: the Caregiver’s Complete Handbook for Making Decisions. Susan Beerman & Judith Rappaport-Musson, $32.98

ELDERCARE 911 offers step-by-step recommendations for over 200 situations, providing family caregivers and professionals with invaluable new insights and guidance for managing eldercare needs. Through a wealth of concrete information and practical, easy-to-follow solutions to nearly every problem, the book includes advice on:

• How to Protect Yourself from “Toxic” Relatives — Learn how to survive the negative impact of know-it-alls, guilt trippers, parents in denial, and disappointers.
• Aging in Place — Step-by-step recommendations to make remaining in the home a safe option, including insights into evaluating parents’ physical, psychological, emotional, and social needs.
• Working Caregivers: A Balancing Act — Reduce stress and maximize time by learning how to prioritize conflicting responsibilities.
• In Case of An Emergency — Learn how to prepare for unexpected problems and react without panic to reduce the stress of a variety of emergency situations.
• Caregiver Voices — Caregivers share their wisdom to help others renew their strength and lighten their hearts.

Emma’s Question. Catherine Urdahl, $8.95 (ages 4-7)

Emma’s grandmother is very sick and needs to stay in the hospital. When Emma comes to visit, she wants to ask her grandmother a very important question — but she’s afraid of what the answer might be.

This simple picture book helps young children address their concerns when a grandparent becomes ill As well it gives adult readers some insight into the emotions and fears illness can raise in children this age.

The Estrogen-Depression Connection: the Hidden Link Between Hormones & Women’s Depression. Karen Miller & Steven Rogers, $18.95

This book uncovers the most recent findings on the role of estrogen in women's depression across the life cycle and then offers advice about treatments for depression related to estrogen fluctuations.

Finding Life in the Land of Alzheimer’s: One Daughter’s Hopeful Story. Lauren Kessler, $15.50

Like many children of Alzheimer’s sufferers, Lauren Kessler, an accomplished journalist, was devastated by the disease that seemed to erase her mother’s identity even before claiming her life. But suppose people with Alzheimer’s are not slates wiped blank. Suppose they experience friendship and loss, romance and jealousy, joy and sorrow? To better understand this debilitating condition, Kessler enlists as a bottom-of-the-rung caregiver at an Alzheimer’s facility and learns lessons that challenge what we think we know about the disease. A compelling, clear-eyed, and emotionally resonant narrative, FINDING LIFE IN THE LAND OF ALZHEIMER'S offers a new optimistic look at what the disease can teach us and a much-needed tonic for those faced with providing care for someone they love.

Grandpa Has Changed. Pam Pollak, Meg Belviso & Marta Fàbrega, $8.50 (ages 4-8)

When a loved one has Alzheimer’s, we have to learn to deal with our feelings and the changing situation.

Hearing the Person with Dementia: Person-Centered Approaches to Communication for Families and Caregivers. Bernie McCarthy, $20.95

Losing the ability to communicate can be a frustrating and difficult experience for people with dementia, their families and carers. As the illness progresses, the person with dementia may find it increasingly difficult to express themselves clearly and to understand what others say.

Written with both family and professional carers in mind, this book explains what happens to communication as dementia progresses, how this may affect an individual's memory, language and senses, and how carers might need to adapt their approach as a result. Advocating a person-centered approach to dementia care, the author describes methods of verbal and non-verbal communication, techniques for communicating with people who cannot speak or move easily, and strategies for communicating more effectively in specific day-to-day situations, including at mealtimes, helping the person with dementia to bathe or dress, and while out and about.

How to Care for Aging Parents. Virginia Morris, $23.95

A one-stop resource for all the medical, financial, housing, emotional and practical issues involved in eldercare.

Learning to Speak Alzheimer's: a Groundbreaking Approach for Everyone Dealing with the Disease. Joanne Koenig Coste, $18.95

Revolutionizing the way we perceive and live with Alzheimer's, Joanne Koenig Coste offers a practical approach to the emotional well-being of both patients and caregivers that emphasizes relating to patients in their own reality. Her accessible and comprehensive method, which she calls habilitation, works to enhance communication between caregivers and patients and has proven successful with thousands of people living with dementia. LEARNING TO SPEAK ALZHEIMER'S also offers hundreds of practical tips, including how to

• cope with the diagnosis and adjust to the disease's progression
• help the patient talk about the illness
• face the issue of driving
• make meals and bath times as pleasant as possible
• adjust room design for the patient's comfort
• deal with wandering, paranoia, and aggression

Living with Your Grandchildren: a Guide for Grandparents. Jennifer Lee & Lissa Cowan, $24.95

475,000 Canadian grandparents live with their grandchildren and nearly 57,000 of them are raising these children alone. With chapters on grandparent and grandchild emotions, special needs, health and self-care, as well as an interactive Workbook section, LIVING WITH YOUR GRANDCHILDREN is the definitive book for the rising numbers of grandparents who find themselves raising their grandchildren.

Mom Minus Dad: the Essential Resource Guide for Busy Adults with a Newly Widowed Parent. Jamieson Haverkampf, $20.95

This helpful guide will help families find the resources and advice they need to help a newly widowed parent while balancing the demands of their own lives.

My Gran’s Different. Sue Lawson, illustrated by Caroline Magerl, $19.95

A story of the love and complete acceptance that only a child can give.

My Grandpa Had a Stroke. Dori Hillestad Butler, illustrated by Nicole Wong, $10.50 (ages 4 – 8)

Ryan loves spending Saturdays with his Grandpa, riding in the truck, stopping at Morrie's Diner for breakfast, and fishing on Hall Lake. But when his grandfather has a stroke, everything suddenly changes. Now Ryan is confused and scared. He's worried about his grandfather. And he missed the special bond they shared.

A comprehensive Note to Parents provides additional guidance, information, and resources.

New Medicine Complete Family Health Guide. David Peters, $29.95

Integrating complementary, alternative and conventional medicine, this is a comprehensive and balanced guide to the best treatments for you and your family.

Our Turn to Parent: Shared Experiences and Practical Advice on Caring for Aging Parents in Canada. Barbara Dunn & Linda Scott, $24.95

No one can anticipate what it will be like for you the day you discover you must become a caregiver for one or both of your parents. As you begin to care for them, you will be filled with questions and looking for advice. OUR TURN TO PARENT shows you how to work with your parent to become their caregiver and their champion, and it provides the tools you need to make decisions and feel confident that you are doing right by your aging parents. OUR TURN TO PARENT also includes a thorough caregivers’ guide to resources available in Canada today.

QUESTIONS TO BRING YOU CLOSER TO YOUR GRANDMA & GRANDPA promises to open up your relationship and strengthen the bond between you. This wonderful little book will help you gain a deeper understanding of your family and its history. With plenty of space to write in, it will be a keepsake for years to come.

Remember Me? Alzheimer’s through the Eyes of a Child. Sue Glass, $16.95

A little girl tries to understand what’s wrong with her grandfather – hoping it’s not something she did.

Risk Assessment and Management for Living Well with Dementia. C. Clarke, H. Wilkinson, J. Keady & C. Gibb, $27.95

Risk is central to professional practice, assessment and decision-making in dementia care. Yet theories of risk are often complex and difficult to translate into everyday practice.

This book outlines some of the key issues in risk perception, assessment and management in dementia care in a way that is both practical and accessible to a wide range of practitioners. It develops an approach to risk that promotes choice for people with dementia whilst also acknowledging the complex challenges care providers face. This book highlights principles of good practice for managing risk in dementia care, and presents a rounded approach that will help practitioners negotiate some of the complex issues this entails.

Understanding Behaviour in Dementia that Challenges: a Guide to Assessment and Treatment. Ian Andrew James, $29.95

Behaviours that challenge can significantly interfere with the quality of life of a person with dementia, as well as that of those who live with and care for them. Yet there is a great deal of confusion surrounding how such behaviours should be addressed. This book provides theory and practical guidance on the assessment and treatment of behaviours that challenge in dementia. The author describes the different categories and causes of challenging behaviour, and provides tried-and-tested models which will aid identification, assessment and treatment. A thorough evaluation of the use of psychotropic medication is provided, as well as of a wide range of psychological and biopsychosocial interventions.

This will be an invaluable resource for any professional involved in the assessment and treatment of behaviours that challenge in people with dementia, including psychiatrists, psychologists, community psychiatric nurses, GPs and occupational therapists. It will also be of interest to those involved in commissioning, providing and managing services.

What Every Caregiver Needs to Know About Alzheimer's Disease DVD.  Attainment Company, $84.95 DVD format, 75 minutes

A video-based teaching tool for professional and family caregivers on DVD. Featuring Drs. Kim and Gail Petersen, experts on dementia training.

The video has four sections: MCI, Early, Moderate and Severe Cognitive Disability. Physical changes in the brain, cognitive capabilities and behavioral manifestations are covered. The program includes real family profiles, actors portraying common dementia behaviors, and interviews with real caregivers.

When I’m Gone: Practical Notes for Those You Leave Behind. Kathleen Fraser, $19.95

A fill-in book and resource manual to help family members better handle the details of life when someone dies or has to be away from home for extended periods of time. Includes space to give contact information, location of key documents, wills and living wills, medical records, child and pet care instructions, finances and property, home and vehicle maintenance, computer passwords and special notations.

The Wisdom of Menopause challenges convention with this inspiring look at one of the most commonly misunderstood female health issues. The “change” is not simply a collection of physical symptoms to be “fixed,” Dr. Northrup claims, but a mind/body revolution that brings the greatest opportunity for growth since adolescence. The choices a woman makes now have the power to secure her health and well-being for the rest of her life. Dr. Northrup shows women how they can make menopause a time of personal empowerment and positive energy — emerging wiser, healthier, and stronger in both mind and body than ever before.