Reading Well for Dementia by The Reading Agency recommends helpful reading and digital resources for people living with dementia. There are also books for family, friends and carers. The newly updated booklist provides reliable information, advice and support as well as personal stories and age-appropriate books for children. Scroll down to view the fiull list of recommended reads.

The new booklist is targeted at people living with dementia, carers and family members including younger children to help them understand more about dementia. 

General Information Reads

Adults are being increasingly diagnosed with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI), and this book Coping with Mild Cognitive Impairment (MCI) provides strategies for concerned individuals to help slow the onset of the condition. Around 50% of adults with MCI go on to develop dementia, but research shows that self-help through early intervention and preventative measures can hugely slow this down.

In this book you’ll find the definitive, expert responses to all your FAQs: On Dementia. No question is too simple, too embarrassing, too rude or too offbeat to be included, and each one has been asked by thousands of people just like you. 

In What You Really Want to Know About Life with Dementia is a family-led vision of what carers of people with dementia need and want to know. 

Around 500,000 people care for a person with dementia in England alone. Carers can experience several challenges that often take a toll on their own health and wellbeing including high rates of perceived burden, social isolation, poor mental and physical health and financial hardship.

Failure to acknowledge the needs of the carer or family and friends of those with dementia is shown to have a negative impact on the person living with dementia themselves. Carers often feel poorly equipped to manage the complex needs of the person they care for. Family or friends of the person with dementia often assume the role of carer with little, or no understanding of dementia, or its effects on themselves or the person they care for.

Dementia brings many challenges, not least its ability to disrupt effective communication. The quality of communication plays a major role in how well people living with a dementia manage. In Why Dementia Makes Communication Difficult by Alison Wray readers are asked to reflect on their own role, and how they can manage their own behaviours to avoid unintentionally blocking routes to productive communication.

Reads About Living With Dementia

The Practical Handbook of Living with Dementia: This wide-ranging book takes a person-centred approach to supporting the person and their families/carers to live with dementia and challenge the stigma attached to the condition. 

Slow and delay the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia, from memory loss to disorientation, with a range of practical activities in The Memory Activity Book.

Recommended Reads of Personal Stories

Slow Puncture is an account of a year in the life of Peter Berry, an ordinary man living in a sleepy Suffolk village. Happily married and running a successful business, Peter's life changes when, at the age of fifty, he is given a terminal diagnosis of early onset dementia. This is an inspirational look at both living in the present and coping with dementia. 

A phenomenal memoir, Somebody I Used to Know is both a heart-rending tribute to the woman Wendy Mitchell once was, and a brave affirmation of the woman dementia has seen her become.

In 2003, England won the Rugby World Cup. Steve Thompson was in England's front row, at the heart of the match, and at the heart of the scrum - one of sport's most violent battlegrounds.

But triumph came at a cost. Today, he remembers nothing about playing in that final. In his words, watching the tape back is like watching a ghost.

The years of hurt, and the culture of sucking up punishment and coming back for more, have taken a terrible toll. Steve has been diagnosed with early onset dementia, and serious progressive brain damage. Unforgettable is raw, powerful storytelling. This tale of hope and courage stands as testament to the ultimate strength of the human mind - and to a man no longer pushing himself to the limit for competition, but for his own place in the world. 

Reads for Carers and Family

In this fully updated and revised edition, Dementia Essentials offers a realistic and reassuring guide to help you and the person affected navigate the complexities of dementia and Alzheimer’s, and face anything that these conditions might place your way. Positive and practical, Dementia Essentials will give you with everything you need to provide the best possible care for the person you are supporting.

In How to Help Someone with Dementia by Dr Michelle Hamill and Dr Martina McCarthy you will be provided with insights and ideas to improve quality of life for both you and your loved one, drawing on the experiences of people who are caring for a person with dementia from our services. Whilst every situation is unique, this book will give you the confidence and advice you need to help you support your loved one. 

United is a moving and beautifully illustrated book that captures the real life tales of people living with dementia, as told by their loved ones caring for them. This humorous, heartwarming and often heartbreaking collection will be relatable and supportive for anyone touched by dementia in their lives, and provides insight and information for anyone wanting to know more.

Drawing on the author's first-hand experiences with families, Intellectual Disabilities and Dementia: A Guide for Families provides crucial, accessible information and answers the difficult questions that often arise when a family member with an intellectual disability is diagnosed with dementia.

And then there's The Songaminute Man: a nostalgic memoir of a young man, eldest of fourteen, growing up in 1940s Wednesbury. It's a heartbreaking true account of his son struggling to come to terms with his father's dementia. A tribute to the unbreakable bond between father and son. Peppered with moving and amusing family anecdotes from all stages of Ted’s life, and suffused in love and light through even the most harrowing moments, this heart-wrenchingly honest memoir is powerfully compelling, and should offer succour to others in similar situations.

Books for Children

In Elmer and the Gift by David McKee for ages 3+, Elmer’s lovely Aunt Zelda has something to give him. The only trouble is, she can't remember what it is. A typically warm-hearted Elmo story which brings in how to be helpful and understanding of elderly relatives.

My Book about Brains, Change and Dementia for ages 3-7 breaks down misconceptions about dementia and speaks directly to young children about the realities of the disease, using age appropriate language in an engaging and informative way. 

The Memory Book for ages 5-7 is a reassuring story about the love between a little girl and her grandma, with practical information to help young children understand dementia and the changes it can bring.

From acclaimed poet Nadine Aisha Jassat comes a gripping mystery...in The Stories Grandma Forgot (and How I Found Them). "Grandma Farida is losing her memory - but I'm going to help her remember a huge secret."

Where is Reading Well for dementia available?

Reading Well for dementia is available in all libraries across England and Wales be recommended a title by a health or social care professional, or they can vis library and choose a Reading Well book to borrow for free. Reading Well books are available to borrow from the open shelves of public libraries, as well as here to purchase on LoveReading.

Who is Reading Well for dementia for?

The booklist is targeted at people living with dementia, including people affect dementia including carers and family members including younger children to understand more about dementia. Some of the recommended books provide information and advice; there are also personal stories and children's fiction.

Why has The Reading Agency updated the scheme?

The new Reading Well for dementia list responds to current needs and priorities affected by dementia. It includes a range of topics identified through their evidence reviews and co-production process, including general information about dementia, living with dementia, and information for carers and family, including support for younger children.

How were the topics identified to be included?

Reading Well is an evidence-based, quality-assured programme. The focus of Reading Well to provide helpful reading to support people to understand and manage their health and rellbeing. The lists are created to provide early-stage support and are not a replacement for clinical intervention.

The topics included have been identified following a thorough evidence review, including reviewing National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) guidelines and relevant policies and priorities, consultation with the health sector, library staff and an expert roundtable. This work informed their book selection framework which outlines the key findings and provides recommendations for the scope of the list.

They have also worked closely with their co-production partner, Innovations in Dementia, and a diverse panel of people affected by dementia from across England and Wales. Their views have been central to the development of the list and have helped to ensure both its inclusivity and accessibility.

How were the books chosen?

The Reading Well for dementia books were chosen by their expert book selection panel and mapped against the book selection protocol and book selection framework.

Their book selection panel included representation from accredited organisations and professionals including colleagues from Alzheimer's Society, Bangor University, British Psychological Society, Cardiff and Vale University Health Board, CILIP, Dementia Alliance for Culture and Ethnicity (DACE), Dementia UK, Libraries Connected Public Library Health Group, Royal College of General Practitioners, Royal College of Psychiatrists and Society of Chief Librarians Cymru.

For more reads including fiction recommended reads check out this collection of 15 books featuring dementia.

And if you are looking for children's books to support a diagnosis, check out this collection of 15 children's books featuring dementia.

For more information on Reading Well visit www.reading-well.org.uk

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