When Meme Came to Live at My House
by Mary Janine Langdon

Book Review by Pam Pomo

I have a book for Luke called When Meme Came to Live at My House, by Mary Janine Langdon, with pix by Adam Padilla, printed in '97 by Phoenix Home Life Mutual Insurance Company.  It was distributed in our support group, sponsored by the Alzheimer's Association.

It's about a little girl named Katie who's AD Grandma comes to live with her and her family.  It is so sensitively written and includes Katie's observations of and her reactions to her grandmother's progression from early stage to NH placement.  They even include the "wanting to go home" and other appropriate issues:

It reads:  "I remember when Meme started saying she was ready to go home.  I tried to tell her that she was home and I even took her to her room and showed her some of her things.  She didn't understand me and just looked sad.

I went and told Daddy what happened and he explained to me that each day Meme's brain was slowly stopping.  He quickly put one of (sister) Molly's puzzles together and showed me how as time goes by Meme would keep losing pieces of the puzzle.  The pieces don't come back or heal like when I skinned my knee and once these parts of Meme's brain stop working she wouldn't be able to think as well as she had before."

As I read it, I always cry... They discuss patience, loving touch (hugs), emotional outbursts, lack of recognition of LO's all from the eyes of a child.  It's really well done, IMHO, and simplified enough for younger kids - I started reading it to Luke at 3 or 4 I think.