June is Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month and the Alzheimer’s Association (ALZ) has launched their #goPurple campaign. According to ALZ, more than 55 million people worldwide are living with Alzheimer’s or another dementia. In support of all who deal with dementia, as well as those who want to learn about the brain, we present the following new and acclaimed books:

YOUR BRAIN ON ART: HOW THE ARTS TRANSFORM US by Susan Magsamen, Ivy Ross

Including conversations with artists such as David Byrne, Renée Fleming and evolutionary biologist E.O. Wilson, Your Brain On Art is an authoritative guide to the new science of neuroaesthetics. It offers proof of how our brains and bodies are transformed when we participate in the arts and aesthetic experiences, and how this knowledge can improve our physical and mental health, help us learn and flourish, and build stronger communities.

A MILE AT A TIME: A FATHER AND SON’S INSPIRING ALZHEIMER’S JOURNEY OF LOVE, ADVENTURE, AND HOPE by Mark “Mace” Macy, Travis Macy, Patrick Regan

An inspiring memoir about a father and son entering World’s Toughest Race: Eco-Challenge Fiji despite one of them battling Alzheimer’s. This timely, and deeply moving father-son adventure sheds light on the hard truths of this Disease while giving readers hope of all that still can be achieved.

IN LOVE: A MEMOIR OF LOVE AND LOSS by Amy Bloom

In Love is an unforgettable portrait of one couple’s determination to support each other in their last journey together. Amy Bloom and her husband Brian’s world was changed forever when an MRI confirmed the truth they could no longer ignore. Bloom reflects back on the loving marriage they shared, and then the sudden cascade of things going wrong… Finally confronted with the diagnosis and the daily frustrations and realities of Alzheimer’s, Brian became determined to die on his feet, not live on his knees. Together they find their difficult way to Dignitas, an organization based in Switzerland that empowers a person to end their own life with dignity and peace.

THE SWIMMERS: A NOVEL by Julie Otsuka

From the best-selling, award-winning author of The Buddha in the Attic and When the Emperor Was Divine comes a novel that “starts as a catalogue of spoken and unspoken rules for swimmers at an aquatic center but unfolds into a powerful story of a mother’s dementia and her daughter’s love” (The Washington Post).

THE XX BRAIN: THE GROUNDBREAKING SCIENCE EMPOWERING WOMEN TO MAXIMIZE COGNITIVE HEALTH AND PREVENT ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE by Lisa Mosconi PhD, Maria Shriver

The first book to address cognitive enhancement and Alzheimer’s prevention specifically in women–and to frame brain health as an essential component of Women’s Health. In this revolutionary book, Dr. Lisa Mosconi, director of the Women’s Brain Initiative at Weill Cornell Medical College, provides women with the first plan to address the unique risks of the female brain.

THE AGE-PROOF BRAIN: NEW STRATEGIES TO IMPROVE MEMORY, PROTECT IMMUNITY, AND FIGHT OFF DEMENTIA by Marc Milstein, PhD

Serious mental decline is not an inevitable part of aging. You can boost your short and long-term brain health and significantly lower the risk of dementia—if the right steps are taken now. In The Age-Proof Brain, scientist and popular speaker Dr. Marc Milstein reveals the secrets to improving brain function, which lie in the brain’s surprising connection with the rest of the body. Debunking common misinformation, he offers science-driven strategies in an entertaining, motivating, and easy-to-follow guide.

LIFE’S WORK: A MEMOIR by David Milch

The creator of Deadwood and NYPD Blue reflects on his tumultuous life, driven by a nearly insatiable creative energy and a matching penchant for self-destruction. Life’s Work is a profound memoir from a brilliant mind taking stock as Alzheimer’s loosens his hold on his own past.

THE END OF ALZHEIMER’S PROGRAM: THE FIRST PROTOCOL TO ENHANCE COGNITION AND REVERSE DECLINE AT ANY AGE by Dale Bredesen, David Perlmutter

In The End of Alzheimer’s Dale Bredesen laid out the science behind his revolutionary new program that is the first to both prevent and reverse symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease. Now he lays out the detailed program he uses with his own patients. Accessible and detailed, it can be tailored to anyone’s needs and will enhance cognitive ability at any age. With inspiring stories from patients who have reversed cognitive decline and are now thriving, this book shifts the treatment paradigm and offers a new and effective way to enhance cognition as well as unprecedented hope to sufferers of this now no longer deadly disease. Also available in a spanish edition here.

CAREGIVING WITH LOVE AND JOY: AN EXPERT’S GUIDE TO PROVIDING THE BEST ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND DEMENTIA HOME CARE by Patricia A. Boswell

A revolutionary, practical, uplifting guide for the caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. As a nurse and dementia expert, Boswell knows that the best caregivers think like a problem-solver, addressing physical and emotional issues as they come up. Whether readers are providing the care themselves, managing a caregiver, or sharing the responsibilities, this book presents the most effective tips, tricks, and small changes that can reduce stress and make life easier.

THE SOUL OF CARE: THE MORAL EDUCATION OF A HUSBAND AND A DOCTOR by Arthur Kleinman

When Dr. Arthur Kleinman, an eminent Harvard psychiatrist and social anthropologist, began caring for his wife, Joan, after she was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease, he found just how far the act of caregiving extended beyond the boundaries of medicine. In The Soul of Care: The Moral Education of a Husband and a Doctor, Kleinman delivers a deeply human and inspiring story of his life in medicine and his marriage to Joan, and he describes the practical, emotional and moral aspects of caretaking. He also writes about the problems our society faces as medical technology advances and the cost of health care soars but caring for patients no longer seems important.

THE FIRST SURVIVORS OF ALZHEIMER’S: HOW PATIENTS RECOVERED LIFE AND HOPE IN THEIR OWN WORDS by Dale Bredesen

First person stories of patients who recovered from Alzheimer’s Disease–and how they did it. Dr. Bredesen’s patients have not just survived; they have thrived to rediscover fulfilling lives, rewarding relationships, and meaningful work. This book will give unprecedented hope to patients and their families.

HOW NOT TO STUDY A DISEASE: THE STORY OF ALZHEIMER’S by Karl Herrup

An authority on Alzheimer’s disease offers a history of past failures and a roadmap that points us in a new direction in our journey to a cure. Herrup offers a unique insider’s perspective, describing the red flags that science ignored in the rush to find a cure. Herrup presents a new and sweeping vision of the field that includes a redefinition of the disease and a fresh conceptualization of aging and dementia that asks us to imagine the brain as a series of interconnected “neighborhoods.”

CAREGIVING WITH LOVE AND JOY: AN EXPERT’S GUIDE TO PROVIDING THE BEST ALZHEIMER’S DISEASE AND DEMENTIA HOME CARE by Patricia A. Boswell, LPN, MBA

A revolutionary, practical, uplifting guide for the caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia. As a nurse and dementia expert, Boswell knows that the best caregivers think like a problem-solver, addressing physical and emotional issues as they come up. Whether readers are providing the care themselves, managing a caregiver, or sharing the responsibilities, this comprehensive guidebook will redefine the caregiving experience as one that can be life-affirming and enjoyable. It offers a singular resource for anyone who is looking to provide or manage outstanding daily care while maintaining—and even enhancing—their own health and mental well-being.

For more on these and related titles visit the collection, Brain and Alzheimer’s Titles

Penguin Random House

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