There is plenty of help in our churches for parents of young children – toddler groups, parenting courses, crèche on Sunday. This book is an excellent resource for the increasing number of us who are at the other end of family care. Each thoroughly biblical and accessible chapter closes with thought-provoking questions and quotations, so that the hard-pressed carer will benefit from just considering those even if they can't find time to read a chapter at a sitting. The appendix provides a very helpful list of books, websites and support group details.
Carers certainly need encouragement and sympathy but Emily is not afraid also to challenge unbiblical thinking and 'tell it like it is'. She helpfully points out the many unlooked-for positives of the caring role – for instance learning new skills, and the opportunity for spiritual growth.
I highly commend this book and hope it will find a wider readership than simply those already committed to caring for their parents. To quote another reviewer, it is 'honest, down-toearth, spiritually sensitive, encouraging and realistic'. Jen Watkins helped care for her mother who had Alzheimer's and Parkinson's diseases.