Welcome
When Meg Federico's eighty-year-old mother and newly minted step-father were forced to accept full-time home care, she imagined them settling into a Norman–Rockwellian life of docile dependency. With a family of her own and a full time career in Nova Scotia – a thousand miles away from her parents – Federico hoped they would be able to take care of themselves for the most part, and call on their children when they really needed them – but of course that’s not quite what happens.

As she watches with horror from the sidelines, Federico's parents turn into terrible teens. Fighting off onslaughts of dementia and Alzheimer's disease, Addie and Walter, forbidden by doctors to drink, conspire to order cases of scotch by phone; Addie’s attendant accuses the evening staff of midnight voodoo; Walter's inhibitions decline as dementia increases and mail-order sex aides arrive at the front door. The list of absurdities goes on and on as Federico tries to take some control over her parents’ lives – and her own.

This is a story for the huge generation – nearly 76 million people – now dealing with the care of their parents. You'll laugh and cry as you read this powerful and important debut.

Review Quotes
"Acerbically funny, unflinching and direct."
– Vancouver Sun

"[A] frank account, by turns sad and terribly funny . . . Federico gently delineates the humiliating burden caused by the loss of memory, while humanely portraying a brave new sympathy and understanding between her mother and herself."
– Publishers Weekly (starred review)

For more reviews, click here.

Related Links
• Connect with others and share your experiences at AgingParents.ca

• My Parents Were Awesome, edited by Eliot Glazer
This compilation, published March 2011 from the blog by the same name, includes the selection "Addie & James" contributed by Meg.