cover image When Your Parent Becomes Your Child: A Journey of Faith Through My Mother’s Dementia

When Your Parent Becomes Your Child: A Journey of Faith Through My Mother’s Dementia

Ken Abraham. Thomas Nelson, $15.99 trade paper (256p) ISBN 978-0-8499-4727-8

Dementia is a painfully difficult condition to behold in a loved one and to live with, and families living with it continue to grow in number. Abraham, known for his collaborations with celebrity authors (One Soldier’s Story with Bob Dole), tells his own family’s story this time. Abraham’s mother, Minnie, begins showing signs of dementia in her mid-80s, and family members slowly come to understand that something more than aging is affecting their matriarch. Abraham, a good storyteller, makes incidents of his family’s journey come alive, and the book is immensely readable. Some readers might wish for a more clinical discussion of dementia that would include information about research. But Abraham has chosen to engage readers with a vivid account that many can relate to. He offers an honest message of sympathy, solidarity, and faith that can be used in trying circumstances. (Oct. 3)