Gertrude's Cupboard
Elizabeth Cockey
book reviews:
· general fiction
· chick lit/romance
· sci-fi/fantasy
· graphic novels
· nonfiction
· audio books

Click here for the curledup.com RSS Feed

· author interviews
· children's books @
   curledupkids.com
· DVD reviews @
   curledupdvd.com

newsletter
win books
buy online
links

home

for authors
& publishers


for reviewers

click here to learn more




Buy *Gertrude's Cupboard: Recapturing Minds Stolen by Disease* online

Gertrude's Cupboard: Recapturing Minds Stolen by Disease
Elizabeth Cockey
E.J. Cockney & Company
Paperback
February 2005
rated 4 of 5 possible stars

previous review next review

This is a short book but not a small one. It deals with a subject we should all be mindful of: what will happen to us when we’re old and in the words of Utah Phillips, “all used up”?

The narrator is an art therapist. She found that paying attention to the old and diseased, those discarded by society and even by family, could be its own reward. She endured a personal crisis – the attempted suicide of her son – and was inspired by the guidance of her students. One in particular, Gertrude, became, in her mind, a saint. On a day of extreme despair, faced with an impossible task, she decided, irrationally, to phone Gertrude and ask for her prayers. The day spun out with a series of minor miracles and though no-one can prove it, the author attributes her serendipitous blessings to the prayers of an Alzheimer’s-afflicted shut-in.

The story is possibly true, possibly part fiction and part truth. The author makes no claims. It’s written in plain, realistic language and the characters are well-crafted and believable. E.J. Cockey is an innovative art therapist and inspirational speaker who undoubtedly experienced some of the encounters in the book. It’s important to realize that people on the brink of death and whose families have given up on them can still respond positively to creative stimuli and loving attention. Whatever one’s religious beliefs it’s comforting to be assured that a higher power shapes our destinies, that there is help for all of us. By helping, the author was helped. A simple formula but an eternal one.

Anyone who is concerned about issues of aging and the treatment of Alzheimer’s will be re-energized by the poignant, often amusing story. Gertrude’s profound message – “live and learn” - may seem a truism but it can offer hope in the midst of loss. By living well we learn to deal with the end of life. If we are lucky.



© 2005 by Barbara Bamberger Scott for curledup.com.

buy *Gertrude's Cupboard: Recapturing Minds Stolen by Disease* online
click here for more info
Click here to learn more about this month's sponsor!


fiction · sf/f · comic books · nonfiction · audio
newsletter · free book contest · buy books online
review index · links · · authors & publishers
reviewers

site by ELBO Computing Resources, Inc.