The Memory of All That: A Love Story about Alzheimer's

Description

From the award-winning bestselling author of books about autistic and learning-disabled children, Mary MacCracken, comes an engaging memoir of love, marriage-and Alzheimer's. Braving divorce to be together, Cal and Mary help each other overcome setbacks in their work. Cal's inventions are increasingly successful; Mary's first book is published to much acclaim, followed by three more. It seems nothing can stop them. Then Alzheimer's strikes. Always a fighter, Cal vows to beat his disease, while Mary finds ways to sustain their loving life together, devising ways to help Cal as he falters. She herself is helped by good doctors, social workers, and many friends-a whole community of care. Still, all the support in the world can't stop Cal's decline. He goes missing at night, flees his daycare program repeatedly, and must finally go to a memory unit. But even then, he and Mary share bits of happiness. In the end, they fail to beat Alzheimer's. Yet their story is also one of triumph, as their love persists all through and beyond their battle. Poignant and inspiring, The Memory of All That is a beautifully written love story that offers guidance and comfort to those dealing with dementia, or any of life's challenges.

Mary MacCracken, an internationally best-selling author, has written four books about her work with autistic and learning-disabled children: Circle of Children, Lovey, City Kid, and Turn-About Children. Her books have been published in fourteen countries and the first two were made into movies for television, starring the actress Jane Alexander. Mary spent her last years with her husband, Cal, an inventor with eighty patents, at Kendal at Hanover, a Continuous Care Retirement Community in Hanover, New Hampshire, and the decade after his death writing about their experiences dealing with his disease.

2022 Sarton Book Award Finalist for Best Memoir "A moving and frank remembrance of love and loss." -Kirkus Reviews "[A] beautifully told, heartrending story . . . Anyone who has with a loved one with Alzheimer's or another dementia should find valuable lessons and inspiration here." -Dr. Robert Santulli, author of The Emotional Journey of the Alzheimer's Family and The Alzheimer's Family: Helping Caregivers Cope "The Memory of All That tells a compelling story of a marriage tested to the fullest by the ravages of Alzheimer's; it is the drama of a passionately committed relationship transformed by suffering and grace. Ultimately, MacCracken shows us, the true triumph of the spirit is found in the resolve to love more fully in the face of certain debilitation and death. I was haunted by this poignant memoir." - Alicia Hokanson, award-winning author of Perishable Earth and Mapping the Distance "A road map for sustaining love in the face of inevitable loss for any of us. Mary MacCracken is a skilled storyteller who knows how to turn this tale of wrenching heartbreak into a surprisingly uplifting memoir." -Jan Maher, award-winning author of The Persistence of Memory and Other Stories, Earth as It Is, and Heaven, Indiana "A moving account of one couple's vibrant, loving relationship, their courage in facing Alzheimer's, and their fierce unwillingness to abandon any moment of shared happiness before the end. This poignant narrative also offers ways to handle the problems and difficult decisions faced by caregivers and their families." -Nancy Dubler, LLB, Affiliated Professor, Division of Medical Ethics, NYU Langone Medical Center and author of Alzheimer's Dementia: Dilemmas in Clinical Research and Ethics on Call:A Medical Ethicist Shows How to Take Charge of Life-and-Death Choices "A generous and stirring memoir about Alzheimer's, framed not as tragedy but as a chronicle of married love. Readers facing a similar journey will welcome this book with relief and hope." -Christine Hemp, author of Wild Ride Home: Love, Loss and a little White Horse "MacCracken writes with honest poignancy in beautiful prose. . . . [This book] will help anyone who is dealing with Alzheimer's . . . interested in learning more about the disease and its profound effect on families." -Shawn LaTorre, StoryCircle Book Reviews "The Memory of All That is a love letter to Mary MacCracken's husband with dementia. Here but gone; no longer as he used to be. Ambiguous loss, it's called, with both 'upwelling sadness' and 'scraps of joy.' In this current world of loss, we can find solace in MacCracken's beautifully written story about love and purpose." -Pauline Boss, PhD, author of The Myth of Closure: Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change and Loving Someone Who Has Dementia: How to Find Hope while Coping with Stress and Grief