Elizabeth is missing

Joolee

Registered User
Jul 29, 2014
5
0
Chester
Has anyone else read this book? It is a sort of detective story written from the perspective of a woman living with dementia. I think it is good and I really feel for her confusion and distress of losing Elizabeth. It certainly highlights the need for more dementia awareness in society. More Dementia Friends!
 

Beate

Registered User
May 21, 2014
12,179
0
London
I got it out from the library and finished it in two days. I think it very accurately portrays dementia from a dementia patient's point of view which makes it very poignant and sad to see how Maud is treated by the people around her - some well-meaning, some mean and some plain not understanding. It's also a kind of detective story that fits in brilliantly with the rest - Maud isn't quite sure what's going on anymore but she knows one thing for certain: someone is missing, and she has to delve into her past to try and make sense of it. It's a fascinating read, quite sad too.
I would recommend it to anyone.
 
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dementiasucks

Registered User
Aug 31, 2014
1
0
Ohio USA
My first post on this forum - hello!

I tried to read Elizabeth is Missing but could only make it through about 1/3 of the book.

I agree that this book does a excellent job of illustrating how misunderstood Alzheimer's/dementia is (especially not being recognized by family, a physician and "caretakers").

However, having lived with loved ones who have suffered with Alzheimer's, I found that the repetitiveness of the detail of her memory issues - over and over and over again - was just too much. Perhaps because I have lived it with mother, aunt and both maternal grandparents....but maybe someone who does not understand this disease might benefit from it. I found it incredibly depressing.

Also, unless a person who has early onset Alzheimer's has provided insight for this book, do we really know what goes on in the mind of a person in all stages of the disease. I don't believe we do.

Now that I have taken the book back to the library, I wish had had skimmed the rest of the book to learn more about what actually happened to Elizabeth, but at the time when I decided to quit reading, I did not care. Too many not-so-good memories were flooding my mind.

That being said, not sure how I feel about this book, given what I know about it. Perhaps I need to retrieve it again from the library.

Does anyone know if the author had first hand experience with a loved one with Alzheimer's?
 

Beate

Registered User
May 21, 2014
12,179
0
London
I don't know whether she has personal experience with dementia but it seemed very well-observed in the book. Some scenes are repetitive in a way because that's a trait of dementia. Maybe take it out of the library and try again? I couldn't put it down myself.
 

jenniferpa

Registered User
Jun 27, 2006
39,442
0
The author, Emma Healey, said in an interview that her grandmother had dementia.
 

marionq

Registered User
Apr 24, 2013
6,449
0
Scotland
The book is beautifully written. Good plot, excellent characterisations like a spot on film casting in fact. Clearly written by someone who had first hand experience of dementia. I found it fascinating with all the little historical touches too of eating habits and clothing styles.
 

1966

Registered User
Feb 21, 2015
6
0
I have just read this, it is a real insight, the author has really seemed to capture what the world must be like when you have dementia. it has helped me to understand a bit better I think.
 

Mango

Registered User
Mar 16, 2014
45
0
New Zealand
Have just finished reading this...

I think it provides quite a few good insights and was not as upsetting to read as I expected :) Rated it 4/5.

Links


I found it a better book in a lot of ways than "Still Alice" by Lisa Genova (http://amzn.com/B00PMRRTS2), although that was a very useful read at the time.
 

Sheepteach

Registered User
Sep 4, 2011
161
0
Somerset
I have finally plucked up the courage to read this book, it took me just two days, a miracle, as my head doesn't seem to have enough space for much reading these days.

I was very impressed with the author's insight into dementia logic, and can really identify with the characters in the book, and it wasn't as distressing to read as I had expected. Highly recommended.
 

Tears Falling

Registered User
Jul 8, 2013
637
0
I have read this book. Heartbreaking but so well written. The truth of what was trying to be communicated was there for the character with this misunderstanding, miscommunication being ever present.

Really gave me a good but uncomfortable insight into dementia.
 

Raggedrobin

Registered User
Jan 20, 2014
1,425
0
I thought it was a very good book and while we can't know exactly how someone with dementia thinks, I feel the author did a brilliant job at trying to imagine how it might be. I think any book that spreads the word a bit about dementia is a good thing but I think also it got the balance right between dementia and having a story to keep a plot going.

I particularly like the way she described her daughter, the vagaries of picking out who she was at times and sometimes not thinking it was her and stuff. My Mum certainly behaves like that!
 

mrs mcgonnagal

Registered User
May 9, 2015
153
0
I read this book at the beginning of this year during a difficult time, and it did help me I think, just in recognising things, like the cups of tea lined up on the shelf.
 

LadyA

Registered User
Oct 19, 2009
13,730
0
Ireland
I read it too - I also thought she did a brilliant job. Obviously, none of us can know what is really going on inside the mind of someone with mid-stage dementia. But I think Emma Healey did a fantastic job of giving insight to Maud's behaviours - the notes she was writing to remind herself, the "wandering" which wasn't just wandering, but had a purpose - she was going to look for Elizabeth, etc.

Graham Stokes, in his excellent book "And the Music Still Plays" says something along the lines of there being a reason behind every behaviour - but we may never know the reason. I think in Emma Healey's novel, being able to, so to speak, "look out" through Maud's eyes and see the world from her perspective, could only be helpful, in that it reminds us that, as we are going through the day with someone with dementia, we may not be seeing and understanding things the same way.