Making Rounds with Oscar

Author: David Dosa
Publisher: Hachette UK
ISBN: 1401394965
Category : Family & Relationships
Languages : en
Pages : 240

Book Description
A remarkable cat. A special gift. A life-changing journey. They thought he was just a cat. When Oscar arrived at the Steere House Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Rhode Island he was a cute little guy with attitude. He loved to stretch out in a puddle of sunlight and chase his tail until he was dizzy. Occasionally he consented to a scratch behind the ears, but only when it suited him. In other words, he was a typical cat. Or so it seemed. It wasn't long before Oscar had created something of a stir. Apparently, this ordinary cat possesses an extraordinary gift: he knows instinctively when the end of life is near. Oscar is a welcome distraction for the residents of Steere House, many of whom are living with Alzheimer's. But he never spends much time with them -- until they are in their last hours. Then, as if this were his job, Oscar strides purposely into a patient's room, curls up on the bed, and begins his vigil. Oscar provides comfort and companionship when people need him most. And his presence lets caregivers and loved ones know that it's time to say good-bye. Oscar's gift is a tender mercy. He teaches by example: embracing moments of life that so many of us shy away from. Making Rounds with Oscar is the story of an unusual cat, the patients he serves, their caregivers, and of one doctor who learned how to listen. Heartfelt, inspiring, and full of humor and pathos, this book allows readers to take a walk into a world rarely seen from the outside, a world we often misunderstand.

Making the Rounds with Oscar

Author: David Dosa
Publisher: Headline Review
ISBN: 9780755318131
Category : Hospices (Terminal care)
Languages : en
Pages : 248

Book Description
An otherwise ordinary cat, Oscar has the uncanny ability to predict when people in the Steere House nursing home are about to die. Dr. Dosa tells the stories of several patients and examines end-of-life care as it exists today.

Remembering the Music, Forgetting the Words

Author: Kate Whouley
Publisher: Beacon Press
ISBN: 0807003204
Category : Health & Fitness
Languages : en
Pages : 241

Book Description
From the author of the much-loved memoir Cottage for Sale, Must Be Moved comes an engaging and inspiring account of a daughter who must face her mother’s premature decline. In Remembering the Music, Forgetting the Words, Kate Whouley strips away the romantic veneer of mother-daughter love to bare the toothed and tough reality of caring for a parent who is slowly losing her mind. Yet, this is not a dark or dour look at the demon of Alzheimer’s. Whouley shares the trying, the tender, and the sometimes hilarious moments in meeting the challenge also known as Mom. As her mother, Anne, falls into forgetting, Kate remembers for her. In Anne we meet a strong-minded, accidental feminist with a weakness for unreliable men. The first woman to apply for—and win—a department-head position in her school system, Anne was an innovative educator who poured her passion into her work. House-proud too, she made certain her Hummel figurines were dusted and arranged just so. But as her memory falters, so does her housekeeping. Surrounded by stacks of dirty dishes, piles of laundry, and months of unopened mail, Anne needs Kate’s help—but she doesn’t want to relinquish her hard-won independence any more than she wants to give up smoking. Time and time again, Kate must balance Anne’s often nonsensical demands with what she believes are the best decisions for her mother’s comfort and safety. This is familiar territory for anyone who has had to help a loved one in decline, but Kate finds new and different ways to approach her mother and her forgetting. Shuddering under the weight of accumulating bills and her mother’s frustrating, circular arguments, Kate realizes she must push past difficult family history to find compassion, empathy, and good humor. When the memories, the names, and then the words begin to fade, it is the music that matters most to Kate’s mother. Holding hands after a concert, a flute case slung over Kate’s shoulder, and a shared joke between them, their relationship is healed—even in the face of a dreaded and deadly diagnosis. “Memory,” Kate Whouley writes, “is overrated.”

From Rubble to Redemption

Author: Jim Jenkins
Publisher: Called Writers Christian Publishing
ISBN:
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 181

Book Description
On September 11th, 2001, Jim Jenkins woke up to the nightmare that was 9/11. A few days later, he was headed for Ground Zero in his official capacity as a US Navy Chaplain. Deeply affected by what he experienced there, Jim has decided to share his story with the world as we approach the 20th anniversary of 9/11. Through his encounters with the victims’ families, political leaders like Rudy Giuliani, and celebrities like Elton John, Jim saw God show up in very unique and amazing ways during his time serving at Ground Zero. Jim’s primary message to America is that we must never forget. But Jim also wants his fellow Americans to know that God can bring redemption out of the rubble.

Oscar Wilde

Author: Matthew Sturgis
Publisher: Knopf
ISBN: 0525656367
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 865

Book Description
The fullest, most textural, most accurate—most human—account of Oscar Wilde's unique and dazzling life—based on extensive new research and newly discovered materials, from Wilde's personal letters and transcripts of his first trial to newly uncovered papers of his early romantic (and dangerous) escapades and the two-year prison term that shattered his soul and his life. "Simply the best modern biography of Wilde." —Evening Standard Drawing on material that has come to light in the past thirty years, including newly discovered letters, documents, first draft notebooks, and the full transcript of the libel trial, Matthew Sturgis meticulously portrays the key events and influences that shaped Oscar Wilde's life, returning the man "to his times, and to the facts," giving us Wilde's own experience as he experienced it. Here, fully and richly portrayed, is Wilde's Irish childhood; a dreamy, aloof boy; a stellar classicist at boarding school; a born entertainer with a talent for comedy and a need for an audience; his years at Oxford, a brilliant undergraduate punctuated by his reckless disregard for authority . . . his arrival in London, in 1878, "already noticeable everywhere" . . . his ten-year marriage to Constance Lloyd, the father of two boys; Constance unwittingly welcoming young men into the household who became Oscar's lovers, and dying in exile at the age of thirty-nine . . . Wilde's development as a playwright. . . becoming the high priest of the aesthetic movement; his successes . . . his celebrity. . . and in later years, his irresistible pull toward another—double—life, in flagrant defiance and disregard of England's strict sodomy laws ("the blackmailer's charter"); the tragic story of his fall that sent him to prison for two years at hard labor, destroying his life and shattering his soul.

Dispatches

Author: Michael Herr
Publisher: Vintage
ISBN: 0307814165
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 274

Book Description
"The best book to have been written about the Vietnam War" (The New York Times Book Review); an instant classic straight from the front lines. From its terrifying opening pages to its final eloquent words, Dispatches makes us see, in unforgettable and unflinching detail, the chaos and fervor of the war and the surreal insanity of life in that singular combat zone. Michael Herr’s unsparing, unorthodox retellings of the day-to-day events in Vietnam take on the force of poetry, rendering clarity from one of the most incomprehensible and nightmarish events of our time. Dispatches is among the most blistering and compassionate accounts of war in our literature.

Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul

Author: Jack Canfield
Publisher: Simon and Schuster
ISBN: 145327488X
Category : Self-Help
Languages : en
Pages : 293

Book Description
From playful and hilarious accounts of life with cats to heartwarming tales of cat courage, healing and learning, each touching story in Chicken Soup for the Cat Lover's Soul celebrates the special bond we share with our cats.

Code Talker

Author: Joseph Bruchac
Publisher: Penguin
ISBN: 1101664800
Category : Young Adult Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 242

Book Description
"Readers who choose the book for the attraction of Navajo code talking and the heat of battle will come away with more than they ever expected to find."—Booklist, starred review Throughout World War II, in the conflict fought against Japan, Navajo code talkers were a crucial part of the U.S. effort, sending messages back and forth in an unbreakable code that used their native language. They braved some of the heaviest fighting of the war, and with their code, they saved countless American lives. Yet their story remained classified for more than twenty years. But now Joseph Bruchac brings their stories to life for young adults through the riveting fictional tale of Ned Begay, a sixteen-year-old Navajo boy who becomes a code talker. His grueling journey is eye-opening and inspiring. This deeply affecting novel honors all of those young men, like Ned, who dared to serve, and it honors the culture and language of the Navajo Indians. An ALA Best Book for Young Adults "Nonsensational and accurate, Bruchac's tale is quietly inspiring..."—School Library Journal

The 30,000 Mile Cat

Author: Ginnie L Hansen
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 156

Book Description
What do grizzly bears, hurricanes, mountaintop rescues and a house cat have in common? These are just a few of the life-altering things the future had in store for Ginnie and her husband, Professor, when they were starting a new phase of their lives in Florida. Little did they suspect that the biggest changes would come from a very special cat. For a couple who loved the freedom to travel and the lure of adventure, everything changed when a colorful tortoiseshell cat, named Trouble, wandered into their garden and into their hearts. With her bold and loving personality, Trouble unwittingly became the center of their world. Much to the surprise of their friends and family, Ginnie and Professor were soon organizing their lives and travel around their new cat. So when the couple decided to drive from Florida to Montana for their summer vacation, they took Trouble along. Then, when Montana's landscape proved to be their ideal summer destination, Ginnie and Professor had to navigate the challenges of regular long-distance travel with Trouble. These travels, including the many colorful characters and surprising experiences they encountered along the way, had an unexpected impact on their lives. This feel-good, true story details how the arrival of a stray cat changed the couple's lives forever and shares their many adventures. This is the first book of the continuing 30,000 Mile Cat series. Learn more at the30000milecat.com.

DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY: CHIL DHOOD and ADOLESCENCE

Author: SHAFFER & KIPP.
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780357670866
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 720

Book Description
This popular, topically organized, and thoroughly updated child and adolescent development text presents you with the best theories, research, and practical advice that developmentalists have to offer today. Authors David R. Shaffer and Katherine Kipp provide you with a current and comprehensive overview of child and adolescent development, written in clear, concise language that talks 'to' you rather than 'at' you. The authors also focus on application showing how theories and research apply to real-life settings. As a result, you will gain an understanding of developmental principles that will help you in your roles as parents, teachers, nurses, day-care workers, pediatricians, psychologists, or in any other capacity by which you may one day influence the lives of developing persons. Available with InfoTrac© Student Collections http://gocengage.com/infotrac.