The Memory of All That

A Love Story about Alzheimer's

by Mary MacCracken

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Pub Date Jul 26 2022 | Archive Date May 12 2022

She Writes Press

Biographies & Memoirs | Nonfiction (Adult)

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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.

A Note From the Publisher

An award-winning bestselling author, MARY MACCRACKEN wrote 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. Her books have recently been republished (the first and last under new titles, The Lost Children and A Safe Place for Joey) and still attract a wide readership. 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.

Mary MacCracken died shortly before finishing this book. It is being seen through publication by her daughter, Susan Thistle.

An award-winning bestselling author, MARY MACCRACKEN wrote four books about her work with autistic and learning-disabled children: Circle of Children, Lovey, City Kid, and Turn-About Children. Her...

Advance Praise

“[A] beautifully told, heart-rending story . . . . Anyone caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s or another dementia should find valuable lessons and inspiration here.”

—Robert B. Santulli, MD, author of The Emotional Journey of the Alzheimer’s Family and The Alzheimer’s Family: Helping Caregivers Cope

“[A] drama of a passionately committed relationship transformed by suffering and grace. Ultimately, Mary 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 World and Mapping The Distance

“A roadmap 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, LL.B, 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

“The Memory of All That is a generous and stirring memoir. MacCracken’s gentle prose recounts her husband's decline into Alzheimer's and the toll it takes on them both. Her story, however, is not framed as tragedy but as a chronicle of married love—with no small share of laughter. 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

"Mary MacCracken's book, The Memory of All That, is a love letter to her husband who had 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 a world of loss right now, we can find solace in MacCracken's beautifully written story about love and purpose.

—Pauline Boss, PH.D Author of Loving Someone Who Has Dementia: How to Find Hope while Coping with Stress and Grief and The Myth of Closure: Ambiguous Loss in a Time of Pandemic and Change

“[A] beautifully told, heart-rending story . . . . Anyone caring for a loved one with Alzheimer’s or another dementia should find valuable lessons and inspiration here.”

—Robert B. Santulli, MD...

Available Editions

EDITION	Other Format
ISBN	9781647424176
PRICE	$16.95 (USD)
PAGES	200

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