Barry Jacobs has written an excellent book not only for caregivers of aging medically ill parents but for professionals who work with patients and families coping with chronic illness. Several things stand out in this book. First is the approach which involves following a ficionalized pair of adult sisters who are caring for and coping with an ailing mother. Jacobs writes this account with great depth and creativity and is able to capture the kinds of feelings and describe the kinds of patterns that are often missing in other 'self help' books. Second, Jacobs also utilizes his own expereince, personal and professional, including advice columns he has written over the years. Third, the book covers evrerything from how to decide how much care you can provide to how to consider spiritual and other issues. Fourth, along the way are plenty of very valuable "how to" suggestions that will be of great benefit to any reader. If you are looking for even one caregiving book for your bookshelf, choose this one. Excellent read. Excellent resource.

The Emotional Survival Guide for Caregivers is an amazing book focused around the difficulties faces by two sisters taking care of their ailing mother. Real people can relate to the characters and their struggles are real to many people across America and the rest of the world. I think that anyone who is a caregiver should definately read this book.