Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story
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Manufacturer: Random House
Written By: Charles Pierce
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Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 362.1968310092
EAN: 9780679452911
ISBN: 0679452915
Label: Random House
Manufacturer: Random House
Number Of Pages: 256
Publication Date: 2000-04-25
Publisher: Random House
Release Date: 2000-04-25
Studio: Random House
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Editorial Reviews for Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story
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In this remarkable book, Charles P. Pierce intertwines two dramatic stories-the scientific race to discover the causes of Alzheimer's and the moving experiences of the Pierce family as they struggle with the disease.
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More than four million Americans develop Alzheimer's every year, just as Charles Pierce's father did-horrifically and genetically-and in Hard to Forget, Pierce takes us deep into the country of this disease, to explore how it affects both the body and a family. When his father is diagnosed with Alzheimer's, the author goes on a quest to discover everything he can about the disease. He discusses here Dr. Alois Alzheimer's work early in the twentieth century, then shows how Watson and Crick's announcement of the double-helix structure of DNA opened up the field of Alzheimer's research and led to discoveries by the "genome cowboys"-Dr. Allen Roses, Dr. Peter Hyslop, and others-of the genetic components of the disease. At the heart of this book, too, is the powerful, emotional story of how the Pierce family coped with Alzheimer's and with the threat that the author-and his children-might also inherit it.
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Elegant and richly informative, Hard to Forget is a unique and provocative book.
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Consumer reviews:
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Customer Rating: 
Summary: Much more than an Alzheimer's story...
Comment: I had to search hard to find this book, because other "Charles Pierces" kept coming up online and it was hidden in "aging" or "disease, listed alphabetically" in the bookstores, but I recommend you persevere -- it was worth it. Somehow the author manages to combine a poignant memoir, exploring the way we're taught in our families of origin to deal (or not deal, in the case of the Pierces) with serious issues, with a highly readable account of what doctors know and are racing to find out about this cruel disease. On Saturdays, I often listen to Pierce on the NPR shows "Wait, Wait, Don't Tell Me" and "Only a Game," and he is very funny. Some of that humor, although darker, leavens this book, which also gives an amazingly understandable summary of what scientists know about Alzheimer's and possible treatments. I hope people will read the excerpt here (or in Yankee magazine) and give this book a chance, even if they don't personally know someone with Alzheimer's. With all of us Baby Boomers aging faster than we care to admit, there are expected (according to last week's cover story in Time magazine) to be many, many new cases that eventually will touch most of us. Alzheimer's disease is depressing, but this beautifully written book is not. Highly recommended.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Informative, quick read
Comment: Fortunately, my family has no history of Alzheimer's disease. My only experience with the disease came from my next door neighbor. An elderly couple moved into the house next store to my family home when I was only 3 years old. The couple became my third set of grandparents. The husband, Howard, died about three years later. His wife began to suffer from Alzheimer's shortly after his death. I remember being very confused when she asked me to fetch her sweater that was upstairs on the sewing machine, when she lived in a one story home. My mother tried to explain her condition to me, but I did not understand how she could not know there was not a second floor in the house she had been in for about 5 years. Her family decided to put her into a nursing home because of an injury she sustained in a fall. She died before the Alzheimer's got worse. Since I never had to deal with anyone suffering from Alzheimer's after my neighbor died, I never learned about the disease. I picked up "Hard To Forget: An Alzheimer's Story" to learn about the disease, and what happened to my third grandmother. I found the book very informative and interesting to read. Pierce wonderfully blends together the history of the disorder and his own family's experiences. I managed to finish the book in one sitting because of Pierce's captivating style. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about Alzheimer's disease, or anyone who is looking for an enjoyable and informative read.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Honest story-telling and solid reporting
Comment: As an Alzheimer's family member, I read "Hard to Forget" with great interest. When my mother was diagnosed 13 years ago, my family went through stages of initial denial and then finally accepting the diagnosis and then coping as best we could...a similar story to the Pierce family - and to so many other families. The difference is that my mother was not an "early onset" patient. Hers is probably not the "familial" Alzheimer's Disease. And the terror is not as great for my sister and I as it is for Charles Pierce. But it is still there. The author has a wonderful way of describing the emotional toll of the disease but also of shining a light on the heroism of caretakers like his wife Margaret. I've seen the devotion of wives, husbands, children and grandchildren as they pay weekly and sometimes daily visits to their loved ones in the nursing home. The visits go on for years. They watch as their loved one slips away. But it helps to know that you are not alone in this difficult journey. "Hard to Forget" will help all the families who are coping and who are waiting for a cure.
Customer Rating: 
Summary: To The Scientist
Comment: I just finished Charles Pierce's book and must say that I was very moved by it. In reading your reviews I was struck by the comments by the research scientist who pointed out all the errors in Mr. Pierce's telling. Perfect illustration of his point, I think. We readers aren't quite as concerned with the exact dates as we are with the the evolution of the research as a whole. Can't you all just get along?
Customer Rating:
Summary: A gripping story but a faltering presentation
Comment: I decided to read this book based on a review in The New York Times book review, and the recent knowledge that a family member's symptoms have been tentatively diagnosed as possibly early signs of Alzheimer's. I found the story gripping, but the execution sometimes got in the way for me. I suspect that a more interventionist editor might have forced Pierce to drop some of the unnecessarily detailed place descriptions and reorganized the order of presentation to be more coherent. As it is, however, the book provides lots of interesting and useful information, mixing the history of research on the disease with the personal memoir of Pierce and his family coping with the disease as manifested in his father, uncles and aunt. It is not an easy read, but it is worth the effort.
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More Information on Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story
Boston College Front Row - Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer’s Story
Program detail of Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer’s Story with ... Charles Pierce is a regular contributor to National Public Radio and ESPN radio as well as a writer at large for ...
Sacramento Counseling and Psychology
Hard to Forget : An Alzheimer's Story by Charles P. Pierce 2000 From the book jacket: In this remarkable book, Charles P. Pierce intertwines two dramatic stories - the scientific race ...
Charles P. Pierce
Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story From The Publisher. In this remarkable book, Charles P. Pierce intertwines two dramatic stories-the scientific race to discover the causes of ...
Charlie Pierce - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Sports Guy (2000) Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story (2001) Moving the Chains: Tom Brady and the Pursuit of Everything (2006) External links. Official Website; Charlie Pierce at American ...
Charles Pierce
... National Magazine Award finalist for his piece on Alzheimer's disease "In the Country of My Disease," and has expanded the piece into a book Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story for ...
The Connection.org : Literary Journalism
Here he reads a section of a new memoir, "Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story," about the disease that struck his father and all his father's siblings.
Staff | Only A Game
... Magazine Award finalist for his piece on Alzheimer’s disease "In the Country of My Disease," and has expanded the piece into a book Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer’s Story for ...
Article | The American Prospect
Charles P. Pierce is a staff writer at The Boston Globe Magazine and the author of Sports Guy and Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story.
Alzheimer Society of Canada Resources: The Library, Books on Specific ...
Pierce, Charles P. Hard to Forget: An Alzheimer's Story. Random House, 2000. ISBN 0-679-45291-5. www.randomhouse.ca.
Wait Wait -- Don't Tell Me!
Charlie Pierce, author, Author, Hard To Forget: An Alzheimer's Story (Random House) •Adam Felber, Writer and Performer •Patt Morrison, Los Angeles Times