Psychological Book Review:

Scar Tissue

Scar Tissue is a fictional book about dementia and the effects of aging of an elderly parent can have on an individual's soul, sense of self, and sense of place within a familial context. It tells the story of an artistic woman, married to a scientist, who slips into dementia. At first her husband cares for her, but he dies suddenly, and then she is institutionalized in a place where only one nurse shows her compassion. She has two sons, one a scientist like the father, the other a philosopher. Both seek to understand her condition and care for her.

Despite the fictional conceit, this book deals with a subject that is all too physically real for many elderly Americans and families, and it is unsparing and real in its level of medical details. One can only describe it as harrowing as a real-life, true...
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