The Glory Walk by Cathryn E. Smith
Sounds depressing from the title I gave this post, doesn’t it? I expected it to be horribly sad and frankly didn’t really want to read it, but I make myself at least try to read whatever I pull out of a box. I have been through watching elderly loved ones die, as I grew up surrounded by a host of Great Aunts and Great Uncles from all sides of the family. And I have seen Alzheimer’s take someone from us, piece by piece, bit by bit.
But this book was very well done. The author’s father is the one with Alzheimer’s disease, and she does a good job interspersing childhood memories with daily reality as his illness progresses, through his death and the aftermath. She gives us her sister and her mother’s viewpoints as well, as they deal with her great tall father becoming less and less capable and less predictable day by day. The love they share for him clearly sustains all three woman, and even though the book has its sad times, and we witness the frustration and anger both her father and family go through, it never becomes bogged down. Poetry, news articles and even music are included to both help the reader understand, and shift the mood of the piece. What is well done is that different voices are set in different fonts, but it is all subtly done, so your brain picks up – “Ah, childhood memory” without a hammer blow telling you. So kudos to the typesetter and designer as well.
The book is honest, clear, and a decent read, especially if you like memoirs. Don’t let the subject matter keep you away, as it almost did me.