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Grandma's Box of Memories: Helping Grandma to Remember ISBN: 9781849055178
Demetris, Alex and Demetris, Jean
Published by Jessica Kingsley, 2014
Alice's Grandma has dementia. Her father explains what this means and that the family must help as best they can while realising that she will not get better. Alice has the idea of making a memory box for Grandma. In it she will put things that will remind Grandma of all the good times they have had together. Each member of the family adds something: Alice puts in flower seeds because she and Grandma used to garden together; Grandpa puts in a picture of their wedding day; Mum puts in a soft knitted scarf because her mum taught her to knit; brother Harry adds some toy animals, remembering fun visits to the zoo. And so it goes on. In the end there is a full box of things that Grandma can use to remember happy times, and the children sit with her and talk about those happy times. This beautifully produced hardback book has quite special illustrations showing a family doing their best to help their well-beloved Grandma - there is humour in the story too. The things going into the box mostly have significance for the five senses - the soft scarf for touch, a wooden spoon for making cakes for taste, a bag of lavender for smell, etc. - all of which can help the memory to remember. Highly recommended for families of young children who may have difficulty in explaining what is going on with a grandparent. Available from Amazon, from good bookshops and from the publisher at: www.jkp.com.
Age: 4+