Flowers For Grandpa Dan: A Gentle Story To Help Children Understand Alzheimer's Disease [ハードカバー]

_Flowers for Grandpa Dan: A gentle story to help children understand Alzheimer's disease_ by Connie McIntyre shows three generations -- the three Digging Daniels -- dealing with Alzheimer's disease. Since he was a boy, Grandpa Dan has planted flowers. He has worked the same flower beds with his son Dan for decades. Now Grandson Danny is also a gardener.

Although Grandpa Dan has taught his son that life is full of change, Grandson Danny resists change -- especially the change that leaves his grandpa forgetful, confused, and eventually unable to perform everyday tasks.

_Flowers for Grandpa Dan_ is indeed a "gentle story." Without extraneous elements or didactics, it shows a family coping with Alzheimer's disease, nurturing the essence of their loved one that enables them to connect with him and preserve his legacy.

Louise McIntyre's delicate watercolor illustrations and the book's life-affirming apple green accent color perfectly complement the story. The illustrations depict flowers, not people, retelling the story through metaphor and making it easier for readers to identify with the characters.

Whether children are full of questions or reluctant to acknowledge changes in their loved ones, _Flowers for Grandpa Dan_ invites discussion about Alzheimer's disease. An informational section provided by the Alzheimer's Association, St. Louis Chapter, outlines the wide array of emotions that children might experience as they see changes in a loved one. These emotions may manifest themselves in many different ways. The informational section suggests ways to answer children's questions about the changes and the disease, and ways that children can maintain a meaningful relationship with their loved one.

A portion of the proceeds from the sale of Flowers for Grandpa Dan will be donated to the Alzheimer's Association.

Gracefully, expertly written by Connie McIntyre, and gently, beautifully illustrated by Louise McIntyre, Flowers For Grandpa Dan is a loving story specifically intended to assist young children to understand Alzheimer's disease -- especially if they encounter it within their own families. Grandson Danny learns that even though Alzheimer's disease is gradually changing Grandpa Dan through an increasing dementia, there is one important, vital, intimate thing that never changes. Also available in a paperback edition. Flowers For Grand Dan is an essential addition to every community and elementary school library collection, a very strongly recommended reading for any child whose family must deal with Alzheimer's in the lives of their loved ones.

Although the subject of this story (Alzheimers Disease) is sad and often painful, the story offers hope: while the disease changes a person on the outside, a family's love for that individual, and that person's love for his or her family, never changes. This book provides a much welcome forum for parents and children to talk about their feelings of loss and love with each other.

I recommend this story to both families who are experiencing the loss of a family member due to Alzheimers Disease, and to all children, as a way of opening understanding and compassion toward the older generation.