The Long Hello the Other Side of Alzheimer's
Some books simply must exist and this is one of them. In this fable-like memoir we encounter the fierce loyalty of a mother and daughter refusing the isolation of Alzheimer's. Inside their conversations we encounter a unique voice in memoir. The voice of a mother now unfettered by grammar and propriety: a candid, poetic, and surprisingly thought-provoking voice. In turn, we encounter a daughter taking her own liberties to reconstruct the abandoned, dead-ended family stories of which she is becoming the sole survivor.BETSY WARLANDwriter, teacher, editor; past Director, The Writer's Studio, SFUCathie Borrie's groundbreaking lyrical memoir, The Long Hello, utilizes arrestingly poetic prose to create an ideological sea change in the way in which individuals and society at large view the experience of Alzheimer's, shining new light on the rich emotional and intellectual ways of being that are newly possible in the altering world of the dementia mind.FRANCESCA ROSENBERGDirector, Community and Access Programs, The Museum of Modern Art (MoMA), NYCWe are all dancers, secret or declared, moving to the ever-changing rhythmic tides and tensions of the human experience. Cathie Borrie choreographs the changes in her mother's memory into a new way to see and be, illustrating the iridescent and persistent intelligence of the mind and the limitless wonder of our imagination. She learns to release past choreography, discovering an unexpected metaphor made possible through the ability to love.ELAINE SUMMERSFulbright Scholar; MIT Fellow; pioneering choreographer and intermedia artist; original member, The Judson Dance Theater, NYCThe Long Hellois not a how-to book, but is filled with insights that will be of interest to caregivers and their families. Lyrical and evocative, it is about remembering and forgetting, presence and absence, holding on and letting go. Above all it is about love, courage, and strength. Cathie Borrie is a gifted storyteller, and she has written a memorable book about love and loss.JEFFREY BERMANDistinguished Teaching Professor of English at the State University of New York; author of a dozen books, includingDying to Teach: A Memoir of Love, Loss, and Learning