The Long Goodbye - Davis, Patti Review & Synopsis

 Synopsis

Ronald Reagan's daughter writes with a moving openness about losing her father to Alzheimer's disease. The simplicity with which she reveals the intensity, the rush, the flow of her feelings encompasses all the surprises and complexities that ambush us when death gradually, unstoppably invades life.

In The Long Goodbye, Patti Davis describes losing her father to Alzheimer's disease, saying goodbye in stages, helpless against the onslaught of a disease that steals what is most precious-a person's memory. "Alzheimer's," she writes, "snips away at the threads, a slow unraveling, a steady retreat; as a witness all you can do is watch, cry, and whisper a soft stream of goodbyes."

She writes of needing to be reunited at forty-two with her mother ("she had wept as much as I over our long, embittered war"), of regaining what they had spent decades demolishing; a truce was necessary to bring together a splintered family, a few weeks before her father released his letter telling the country and the world of his illness . . .

The author delves into her memories to touch her father again, to hear his voice, to keep alive the years she had with him.

She writes as if past and present were coming together, of her memories as a child, holding her father's hand, and as a young woman whose hand is being given away in marriage by her father . . . of her father teaching her to ride a bicycle, of the moment when he let her go and she went off on her own . . . of his teaching her the difference between a hawk and a buzzard . . . of the family summer vacations at a rented beach house-each of them tan, her father looking like the athlete he was, with a swimmer's broad shoulders and lean torso. . . . She writes of how her father never resisted solitude, in fact was born for it, of that strange reserve that made people reach for him. . . . She recalls him sitting at his desk, writing, staring out the window . . . and she writes about the toll of the disease itself, the look in her father's eyes, and her efforts to reel him back to her. 

Moving . . . honest . . . an illuminating portrait of grief, of a man, a disease, and a woman and her father.

Review

Patti Davis is the author of five books, including The Way I See It and Angels Don't Die. Her articles have appeared in many magazines and newspapers, among them Time, Newsweek, Harper's Bazaar, Town & Country, Vanity Fair, the Washington Post, and the Los Angeles Times. She lives in Los Angeles.April 1995

When I got married in 1984, my father gave a toast at my wedding. I don't remember his exact words, but they had to do with his recollection of how tiny my hand once was, as a child holding on to his, and how so many years later, he was giving my hand in marriage. An older hand, a woman's hand.

These days, I find myself looking at my father's hands. They seem to have grown smaller, a bit more frail. It's as if they no longer need to grasp life, stretch themselves around it; rather, they are learning to let it go. It's a soft release, not like the Dylan Thomas poem I once embraced: "Do not go gentle into that good night, / Old age should burn and rave at close of day."

I still like that poem; I like its fury and its fierce passion. But I think my father's way is sweeter.

I watch his eyes these days, too. They shimmer across some unfathomable distance, content to watch from wherever his mind has alighted. If I turn into his eyes, it's like turning into a calm breeze. The serenity is contagious.

The tendency when you're around someone with Alzheimer's is to try to reel them back in, include them in the conversation, pique their interest in whatever you happen to be discussing. But I stopped doing that because it seemed to me that I was intruding. Wherever he was, he was content. Wherever he was, he shouldn't be disturbed.

At the ranch we owned when I was younger, my father taught me that when a horse was growing older, when riding it would be unkind and possibly harmful, the horse should be allowed a more peaceful life, roaming in the acres of pasture that our ranch provided. I remember several of our horses living out the remainder of their days in wide, green fields, grazing. That's how I think of my father now; it's what I see in his eyes. Things are calmer where he is-most of the time, anyway. And he grazes-on the moments and hours that are left to him. On the sight of afternoon sun gilding the lawn or clouds skimming across the sky. On his family, who have finally learned how to laugh together, and how to love. He grazes on the taste of life as it slips away-the rich, fertile moments that must be released into the wind, because that's what you do if you're like my father, his hand reaching for God's, leaving ours behind, saying goodbye in small ways, getting us used to his absence.

I haven't read any of the books on Alzheimer's. I probably should, but I don't want my thoughts to be cluttered with other people's impressions, or with medical predictions and evaluations. I want to keep watching my father's hands. I want to remember how they've changed, how uncallused and tender they've become. And I want to chart his distance from his eyes. They're a map, but you have to look closely. Sometimes, I think I actually see him leaving, retreating, navigating his way out of this world and into the next. Other times, I see him right there, as if he's preserving each moment under glass.

When daylight saving time dictated that we should move our clocks ahead an hour, I thought of my father. My mother said that the first clock she changed was his watch. He looks at his watch often now-I'm not sure why. Is it that time seems to be moving faster, and he wants to chase after it by marking its passage? Or does each time of day now have a special significance? Either way, losing an hour of time must have had more of an impact on him than it did on most of us. Life is measured in time-in years, months, hours. And one hour just vanished. It wasn't wasted; it wasn't squandered by daydreaming or staring out the window. It was snatched away, erased-because someone decided it should be. I try to see things sometimes as he must. He lives more in the moment now. It's one thing I have learned about Alzheimer's-the past and the future are risky subjects. It occurs to me that it must seem unfair to him that a precious hour-a measurement of life-could so easily be discarded, erased from the map of time. Yet it also occurs to me that, in one way, he is living as we all should-in the present moment.

I hold on to this as a tiny gift in the midst of a sad time. I suppose it's what happens when one sees a horizon darkened by disease or loss-there are always thin rays of light. You have to be on the alert for them, and hold on tightly to them.

May 1995, Los Angeles

On Sunday morning, I went to church with my parents. It's something my father looks forward to all week, and I wanted to share the experience; I wanted to watch him, absorb some of his reverence.

He remembers every word of the Lord's Prayer. He was looking straight ahead, to the pulpit and the tall wooden cross behind it, reciting the prayer along with everyone else, never missing a syllable. The same thing happened with the doxology: "Praise God from whom all blessings flow . . ." He sang it perfectly.

I thought about the mysteries of this thing we call memory. Even being encroached upon by something as relentless as Alzheimer's, the memory has pockets that resist the progression of time and the steady march of disease. It's fitting that, in my father's case, those pockets contain hymns and prayers. They are his treasures; they always have been-the shiny stones he turns over in his hand, keeping them polished and smooth. I closed my eyes for a moment as I sat between my parents and prayed that he will always be able to recite the Lord's Prayer, always recall a hymn. I asked God to keep his treasures safe.

���

My mother and I talk about death now as if we are resigning ourselves to its presence, growing more comfortable with having it around, lurking nearby. At the moment, it's a shadow on the wall, but one that's lengthening, one that won't go home at dawn. I'm reminded of Don Juan's counsel in Carlos Castaneda's books. He said that death is our constant companion, that it travels on our left shoulder, and that our task must be to make it our "ally."

I feel, in my conversations with my mother, that we are both making friends with this shadowy presence, this unwelcome guest. Because the enemy-the true messenger of terror-would be the full progression of Alzheimer's. I never want to see the day when my father stands up in church and is unable to remember the Lord's Prayer. I would rather watch him turn toward his left shoulder and say, "All right, I'm ready now."

Frequently these days, my mother and I remind each other that the grieving process has already begun. It's a mountainous journey, and we need to be reassured that we've already covered some miles. It's as if we are passing a canteen of water back and forth-it doesn't shorten the distance, but it helps.

When I say "I love you" to my father now, I'm deliberate and focused about it. I say it straight into his eyes, straight into the deepest currents of his soul. I want the words to be like those of the Lord's Prayer-ones he won't forget, ones that will resist the onslaught of disease.

We all have a passage out of this world and into the next. This is my father's, as sad as it is for those of us around him who don't want anything to be wrong with him. But ultimately, it will be his passage home. That's what he always told me: God will come to each of us when he's ready, and he will take us home.

My father made heaven sound so lovely-a peaceful, green kingdom in which all living creatures get along. A celestial Noah's Ark. When one of my fish died, he and I scooped it out of the aquarium and gave it a funeral. My father tied sticks together to form a cross, which he placed on the tiny grave; he gave my fish a brief eulogy and described to me the clear blue waters it would be swimming in up in heaven. I could see the water-blue as the sky, endless, and teeming with other fish, none of whom would eat one another. I became so enchanted with this vision that I felt sorry for my other fish, condemned to the small, unnatural environment of the aquarium, with its colored rocks and gray plastic castle.

"Maybe we should kill the others," I said to my father, eager to give them the same freedom, the same beauty as my newly departed fish.

He told me, in God's time, the others would go too.

I go back to childhood to retrieve the stories that once made me feel better, hoping that they still have the same effect. I became less certain as I got older. When did I stop imagining a green-and-blue paradise on the other side? When did fear throw it in shadow? I need to return to the stories in order to let my father go.

Floating in the Deep End

With the heartfelt prose of a loving daughter, Patti Davis provides a life raft for the caregivers of Alzheimer’s patients. “For the decade of my father’s illness, I felt as if I was floating in the deep end, tossed by waves, carried by currents, but not drowning,” writes Patti Davis in this searingly honest and deeply moving account of the challenges involved in taking care of someone stricken with Alzheimer’s. When her father, the fortieth president of the United States, announced his Alzheimer’s diagnosis in an address to the American public in 1994, the world had not yet begun speaking about this cruel, mysterious disease. Yet overnight, Ronald Reagan and his immediate family became the face of Alzheimer’s, and Davis, once content to keep her family at arm’s length, quickly moved across the country to be present during “the journey that would take [him] into the sunset of [his] life.” Empowered by all she learned from caring for her father—about the nature of the illness, but also about the loss of a parent—Davis founded a support group for the family members and friends of Alzheimer’s patients. Along with a medically trained cofacilitator, she met with hundreds of exhausted and devastated attendees to talk through their pain and confusion. While Davis was aware that her own circumstances were uniquely fortunate, she knew there were universal truths about dementia, and even surprising gifts to be found in a long goodbye. With Floating in the Deep End, Davis draws on a welter of experiences to provide a singular account of battling Alzheimer’s. Eloquently woven with personal anecdotes and helpful advice tailored specifically for the overlooked caregiver, this essential guide covers every potential stage of the disease from the initial diagnosis through the ultimate passing and beyond. Including such tips as how to keep a loved one hygienic, and careful responses for when they drift to a time gone by, Davis always stresses the emotional milestones that come with slow-burning grief. Along the way, Davis shares how her own fractured family came together. With unflinching candor, she recalls when her mother, Nancy, who for decades could not show her children compassion or vulnerability, suddenly broke down in her arms. Davis also offers tender moments in which her father, a fabled movie star whom she always longed to know better, revealed his true self—always kind, even when he couldn’t recognize his own daughter. An inherently wise work that promises to become a classic, Floating in the Deep End ultimately provides hope to struggling families while elegantly illuminating the fragile human condition.

Eloquently woven with personal anecdotes and helpful advice tailored specifically for the overlooked caregiver, this essential guide covers every potential stage of the disease from the initial diagnosis through the ultimate passing and ..."

The Lives Our Mothers Leave Us

Compiled by the daughter of Ronald and Nancy Reagan, this collection features prominent women discussing the complex, humorous, and ultimately loving relationships they have with their mothers. Contributors include Candice Bergen, Lily Tomlin, and Lorna Luft.

Compiled by the daughter of Ronald and Nancy Reagan, this collection features prominent women discussing the complex, humorous, and ultimately loving relationships they have with their mothers."

The Wit and Wisdom of Gracie

Lessons in life, love, and running in packs—from one remarkable pug The first thing Gracie remembers is being at the bottom of a big pile of other dogs, scrambling as hard as she could to get a taste of her mother’s milk. Life is sweet, but life—as always—has to change. One day, a friendly new woman picks Gracie up in her arms, hugging her so tightly it seems she will never let go. This is Gracie’s new mommy, who has come to take this headstrong young pug on the adventure of a lifetime. Gracie moves to a new house, which is ruled with an iron paw by a no-nonsense feline named Aretha. Gracie is descended from wolves, and she knows enough about her ancestors to understand that not every critter gets to run the pack. Everyone in this little family has their part to play, and Gracie is determined to be the best pug she can be—no matter what life throws her way!

One day, a friendly new woman picks Gracie up in her arms, hugging her so tightly it seems she will never let go. This is Gracie’s new mommy, who has come to take this headstrong young pug on the adventure of a lifetime."

The Earth Breaks In Colors

A racially fueled incident exposes the fissures that sit beneath the surface of friendships and families, causing even more damage than the massive earthquake that separates them, The Earth Breaks in Colors is a powerful story of race and redemption. Whisper and Odelia are eleven-year-old girls who find refuge in the quiet corner of innocent friendship. Their Southern California homes each play host to an undercurrent of secrets. For Whisper that means a fractured mother returning from rehab, for Odelia a brother whose absence is laced with mystery. Race had no real place in the playful friendship of the white Whisper and the black Odelia, until a terrifying encounter brings prejudice to the forefront of their lives, opening their young hearts to ill begotten emotion. A violent earthquake further tears the world as they know it apart. Can hope and innocence be restored? An heirloom timepiece, a curious old woman and an unlikely hero join the girls as they search for their families and understanding among the rubble.

A racially fueled incident exposes the fissures that sit beneath the surface of friendships and families, causing even more damage than the massive earthquake that separates them, The Earth Breaks in Colors is a powerful story of race and ..."

The Triumph of Nancy Reagan

The made-in-Hollywood marriage of Ronald and Nancy Reagan was the partnership that made him president. Nancy understood how to foster his strengths and compensate for his weaknesses-- and made herself a place in history. Tumulty shows how Nancy's confidence developed, and reveals new details surrounding Reagan's tumultuous presidency that shows how Nancy became one of the most influential first ladies in history. -- adapted from jacket

 Patti Davis , Long Goodbye , 107–8. 547 “the pain that I have caused”: Eleanor Clift, “ The Long Goodbye ,” Newsweek online, October 1, 1995, https://www.newsweek.com/ long - goodbye -184022. 548 “I don't know how to be alone ."

Last Act

His name in American politics is more cited than any other president. Both the Republican and Democratic parties are radically different today, mainly as a result of Ronald Reagan and the force of his ideas. No twentieth century president shaped the American political landscape so profoundly. Craig Shirley’s Last Act is the important final chapter in the life of Reagan that no one has thus far covered. It’s the kind of book that widens our understanding of American history and of the presidency and the men who occupied it. To tell Reagan’s story, Craig has secured the complete, exclusive, and enthusiastic support of the Reagan Foundation and Library and spent considerable time there reviewing sealed files and confidential information. Cast in a grand and compelling narrative style, Last Act contains interesting and heretofore untold anecdotes about Reagan, Mrs. Reagan, their pleasure at retirement, the onslaught of the awful Alzheimer’s and how he and Mrs. Reagan dealt with the diagnosis, the slow demise, the extensive plans for a state funeral, the outpouring from the nation, which stunned the political establishment, the Reagan legacy, and how his shadow looms more and more over the Republican Party, Washington, the culture of America, and the world.

 Davis , Patti . The Lives Our Mothers Leave Us: Prominent Women Discuss the Complex, Humorous, and Ultimately Loving Relationships They Have with Their Mothers. New York: Hay House, 2009. Davis , Patti . The Long Goodbye ."

Rawhide Down

A Washington Post Notable Nonfiction Book for 2011 A Richmond Times Dispatch Top Book for 2011 A minute-by-minute account of the attempted assassination of Ronald Reagan, to coincide with the thirtieth anniversary On March 30, 1981, President Ronald Reagan was just seventy days into his first term of office when John Hinckley Jr. opened fire outside the Washington Hilton Hotel, wounding the president, press secretary James Brady, a Secret Service agent, and a D.C. police officer. For years, few people knew the truth about how close the president came to dying, and no one has ever written a detailed narrative of that harrowing day. Now, drawing on exclusive new interviews and never-before-seen documents, photos, and videos, Del Quentin Wilber tells the electrifying story of a moment when the nation faced a terrifying crisis that it had experienced less than twenty years before, the assassination of President John F. Kennedy. With cinematic clarity, we see Secret Service agent Jerry Parr, whose fast reflexes saved the president's life; the brilliant surgeons who operated on Reagan as he was losing half his blood; and the small group of White House officials frantically trying to determine whether the country was under attack. Most especially, we encounter the man code-named "Rawhide," a leader of uncommon grace who inspired affection and awe in everyone who worked with him. Ronald Reagan was the only serving U.S. president to survive being shot in an assassination attempt.* Rawhide Down is the first true record of the day and events that literally shaped Reagan's presidency and sealed his image in the modern American political firmament. *There have been many assassination attempts on U.S. presidents, four of which were successful: Abraham Lincoln, James A. Garfield, William McKinley, and John F. Kennedy. President Theodore Roosevelt was injured in an assassination attempt after leaving office.

 Davis , Patti . The Long Goodbye . New York: Alfred A. Knopf, 2004. Davis , Patti . The Way I See It: An Autobiography. New York: G. P. Putnam's Sons, 1992. Deaver, Michael K. A Different Drummer: My Thirty Years with Ronald Reagan."

Help for the Caring

This much-needed bibliography and filmography brings together lists of books about Alzheimer's and caregiving, including biographies, poetry, and even fiction, as well as in instructional and dramatic films.

ISBN: 0687007917 Rando , Therese A. Grieving" How To Go On Living When Someone You Love Dies . Lexington, MA: Lexington Books, 1988. Raphael, B. The Anatomy of Bereavement. New York: Basic Books, 1984. Roberts, Barbara K. Death IVithout ..."

Guide to Ministering to Alzheimer's Patients and Their Families

Learn how to develop an effective Alzheimer’s ministry. The Guide to Ministering to Alzheimer's Patients and Their Families examines the importance of spirituality in dealing with the everyday challenges of this mysterious disease. Not a “how-to” manual with step-by-step instructions or tried and true formulas, this unique book instead examines the essential elements of ministering to dementia patients based on the first-hand accounts of family members living through pain and uncertainty. The book explores the stages of Alzheimer's, grief and guilt, available resources, and implications of spiritual care for patients and families. It is equally useful as a textbook for graduate and undergraduate work, a reference for study groups and seminars, and a primer for those with limited knowledge of the illness. Ministers sometimes neglect Alzheimer’s patients and their families because they feel they don’t know what to say or do even though they want to be obedient and faithful servants in this specialized ministry. The Guide to Ministering to Alzheimer’s Patients and Their Families communicates the thoughts, feelings, and needs of those affected by the disease to help ministers feel more comfortable, confident, and competent as they develop a theological understanding of God, Alzheimer’s patients, and their role in ministry. The book also provides models for ministry; role-play scenarios; a sample text for a care facility worship service, a care facility memorial service, and a funeral service for a Christian and a non-Christian as well as a sample clergy seminar program on Alzheimer’s ministry. The Guide to Ministering to Alzheimer’s Patients and Their Families examines: common characteristics of early, mild, moderate, and severe Alzheimer’s general information about Alzheimer’s ethical decision-making support group ministry respite care religious rites faith issues heredity hospitalization of Alzheimer’s patients long-distance caregiving working with other clergy The Guide to Ministering to Alzheimer’s Patients and Their Families also includes a special appendix of selections from the Scriptures. This book is a unique resource for all Christians who desire to minister to those affected by Alzheimer’s—especially pastors, priests, chaplains, pastoral counselors, church leaders, healthcare professionals, and seminary students.

Pat Otwell. Prospect, KY: NB Publishing & Marketing. Carroll, David L. (1989). When your loved one has Alzheimer's: A caregiver's guide. ... Davis , Patti (2004). The long goodbye .New York: Alfred A. Knopf. Davis, Robert (1989)."

Meet Me Where I Am

Me Where I Am provides knowledge and essential tools to lovingly, confidently and, above all, successfully care for those who live with Alzheimer’s and related dementias. Over 5 million Americans currently live with Alzheimer’s disease. Along with them, 15 million unpaid caregivers seek knowledge and resources to assist them in the journey. The unique care principles found in Meet Me Where I Am help mitigate depression, decrease anxiety, and allow for successful relationships as long as possible in the dementia journey. Mary Ann Drummond, RN credits her unique care philosophy to the greatest teachers of all—the many individuals living with Alzheimer’s and related dementias she has had the pleasure of caring for over the years. Imbuing practical tips with wisdom, respect, and sensibility, Drummond comes full circle by sharing what happened when her own mentor fell prey to the disease. Meet Me Where I Am is a road map that teaches caregivers how to focus on the possibilities, discover the joy in the journey, and prepare for the road ahead.

She referred to the disease as “ the long goodbye ,” which I had never heard before, but thought it to be a great description. Afterward I learned The Long Goodbye is a book by Patti Davis about Ronald Reagan's battle with Alzheimer's ..."

Getting Through the Dark Days of Caregiving

This book is biographical, practical, and theological. It covers strategies to help Christian counselors, pastors, caregivers, and friends minister to the needs of care receivers. Behaviors of dementia care receivers and others are detailed, as are strategies for caregiver stress and facing the mourning that follows.

Cooley, Donald G., editor, Family Medical Guide, (NY: Better Homes and Gardens Books, 1973), Davis , Patti The Long Goodbye (New York: Penguin Group, 2004). Doka, Kenneth J., ed. Living With Grief When Illness is Prolonged (Washington, ..."

Political Power: Ronald Reagann

Presents a graphic biography of President Reagan, from his early life and acting career to his accomplishments as president and the assassination attempt on his life in 1981.

PERSON, WAS EUMMED UP BY HIS DAUGHTER PATTI DAVIS IN HER BOOK " THE LONG GOODBYE . . . " “TO UNDER$7AND RONALD REA GAN, YOU HAVE TO UNDER$7AND THE SMALL TOWN HE CAME FROM — THE ORD/NAR/NESS OF /7,' . " ' '-' I 'm WHEN REAOAN WAG BORN HIS ..."

Somebody I Used to Know

THE RICHARD AND JUDY BOOK CLUB PICK THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER A BBC RADIO 4 BOOK OF THE WEEK SELECTED AS A BOOK OF THE YEAR BY THE TIMES SELECTED AS A SUMMER READ BY THE SUNDAY TIMES, FINANCIAL TIMES, DAILY TELEGRAPH, THE TIMES AND THE MAIL ON SUNDAY 'Revelatory' Guardian 'A miracle' Telegraph 'Remarkable' Daily Mail 'A landmark book' Financial Times How do you build a life when all that you know is changing? How do you conceive of love when you can no longer recognise those who mean the most to you? A phenomenal memoir – the first of its kind – Somebody I Used to Know is both a heart-rending tribute to the woman Wendy Mitchell once was, and a brave affirmation of the woman dementia has seen her become.

Wendy Mitchell's courageous and unflinching account lets us know' Patti Davis , author of The Long Goodbye '[An] angry, powerful memoir ... Mitchell writes movingly ... [Her] mission is to remind readers that people can live with ..."

Killing Reagan

From the bestselling team of Bill O'Reilly and Martin Dugard comes Killing Reagan, a page-turning epic account of the career of President Ronald Reagan that tells the vivid story of his rise to power -- and the forces of evil that conspired to bring him down. Just two months into his presidency, Ronald Reagan lay near death after a gunman's bullet came within inches of his heart. His recovery was nothing short of remarkable -- or so it seemed. But Reagan was grievously injured, forcing him to encounter a challenge that few men ever face. Could he silently overcome his traumatic experience while at the same time carrying out the duties of the most powerful man in the world? Told in the same riveting fashion as Killing Lincoln, Killing Kennedy, Killing Jesus, and Killing Patton, Killing Reagan reaches back to the golden days of Hollywood, where Reagan found both fame and heartbreak, up through the years in the California governor's mansion, and finally to the White House, where he presided over boom years and the fall of the Iron Curtain. But it was John Hinckley Jr.'s attack on him that precipitated President Reagan's most heroic actions. In Killing Reagan, O'Reilly and Dugard take readers behind the scenes, creating an unforgettable portrait of a great man operating in violent times.

... Jonathan Aitken, Margaret Thatcher: Power and Personality; Patti Davis , The Long Goodbye : Memories of My Father; and the very emotional Breaking Points, by Jack and Jo Ann Hinckley. We also consulted a broad number of magazines and ..."

Donald’S Story

With heart-wrenching honesty, Donalds Story chronicles the last days and years of one familys drama through the hell which is Alzheimers dementia. This story will make you cry, make you laugh, and make you think. Its a must read for anyone who will ever get old particularly for anyone who may one day be a caregiver, an AD patient, or a supportive family member of the same. The suffering wreaked from terminal dementia is a saga which is becoming all too familiar. As the 6th leading cause of death in the U.S., Alzheimers and related dementing illnesses are epidemic. How do you survive this disease which robs you of your very self? How do you survive watching someone you love slip away? Complete with "AD Survival Tips\

http://www.compassionandsupport.org/ index.php/for_patients_families/death_dying/ vigil_moment_bereavement#death Recommended Reading Visions, Trips and Crowded Rooms, David Kessler The Long Goodbye , Patti Davis The 36 Hour Day, ..."

The Promise and Politics of Stem Cell Research

How did scientific and medical research on something smaller than the period at the end of a sentence come to such prominence in American political life? Confounding the traditional polarized politics of the country previously dominated by anti-abortion and pro-choice politics, the politics of stem cell research may be redrawing the borders of public life. This book explores the new political partnerships that have been formed across party lines, the remarkable collaborations between scientists and patients as advocates for research, and the promise of stem cell research that hangs in the balance.

 Patti Davis Author of The Long Goodbye , a book about her father Ronald Reagan's struggle with Alzheimer's disease and the care her mother , Nancy Reagan , provided during the various stages of this horrific disease " From its inception ..."

Chicken Soup for the Father & Daughter Soul

Celebrating every little girl's childhood hero and the special dad and daughter bond!

 Patti Davis's book, The Long Goodbye , is being released in November 2005 by Knopf. She has written for numerous magazines, including Time, Newsweek, Ladies' Home Journal, Glamour, Harper's Bazaar, Town and Country as well as the L.A. ..."

Finding Love After Loss

Finding Love After Loss is a friendly guide to dating after the death of a spouse. Through interviews with widows and advice from experts in the field, this book details the singular challenges of women who are looking for love again after the loss of a partner—and the unexpected ways they are shaping their new lives.

... everything is going fine and life is smooth. But when the “in sickness and in health” part kicks in and sickness does enter your lives, you're tested. Your resilience is tested. — Patti Davis , actor and author of The Long Goodbye ..."

Staging Emily Dickinson

With a writer who had never written a play, an actress who had never taken the stage alone, and a director who had never headed a live performance, The Belle of Amherst managed to become an American theater classic. Despite being savaged by critics attending its opening night in April 1976, the play, which details the life of Emily Dickinson, survived its baptism by fire and went on to appear in theaters across the world. This is the remarkable untold story of "the little play that could." Covering the play's humble beginnings as well as its pioneers--like writer William Luce, director Charles Nelson Reilly and actress Julie Harris--this work also documents the modern efforts to keep the play alive. Exploring the show's enduring dramatic power, this book ultimately pays respect to the one-woman show that has triumphed for decades.

 Patti Davis , daughter of President Ronald Reagan , wrote in her memoir The Long Goodbye that even in the last stages of Alzheimer's disease , she could not accept - refused to believe - that her father's soul had succumbed to the ..."

Pop When the World Falls Apart

Organized around the idea of crisis and adversity, be it personal, social, or categorical, the contributors to Pop When the World Falls Apart showcase the range of ways that pop music studies has responded to the social, political, and cultural shifts that are reshaping the world today.

Also see the book by Reagan's daughter Patti Davis about her reconciliation with her father during his final struggle with Alzheimer's, The Long Goodbye (New York: Knopf, 2004); it makes the same points from her left-liberal perspective ..."

How Does That Make You Feel?

How Does That Make You Feel? obliterates the boundaries between the shrink and the one being shrunk with unabashedly candid writers breaking confidentiality and telling all about their experiences in therapy. This revelatory, no-punches-pulled book brings to light both sides of the “relationship” between therapist and client—a bond that can feel pure and profound, even if it is, at times, illusory. Contributors include an array of essayists, authors, TV/film writers and therapists, including Patti Davis, Beverly Donofrio, Royal Young, Molly Peacock, Susan Shapiro, Charlie Rubin, Estelle Erasmus, and Dennis Palumbo. Full list of contributors: Sherry Amatenstein Laura Bogart Martha Crawford Patti Davis Megan Devine Beverly Donofrio Janice Eidus Estelle Erasmus Juli Fraga Nina Gaby Mindy Greenstein Jenine Holmes Diane Josefowicz Jean Kim Amy Klein Binnie Klein Anna March Allison McCarthy Kurt Nemes Dennis Palumbo Molly Peacock Pamela Rafalow Grossman Charlie Rubin Jonathan Schiff Barbara Schoichet Adam Sexton Susan Shapiro Beth Sloan Eve Tate Kate Walter Priscilla Warner Linda Yellin Royal Young Jessica Zucker

 Patti Davis is the author of eleven books, both nonfiction and fiction, including The Long Goodbye , Till Human Voices Wake Us, and The Blue Hour. Her most recent novel is The Earth Breaks in Colors. She also wrote the screenplay for the ..."

Ronald Reagan

The conservative icon who reshaped American politics and laid the groundwork for the end of the Cold War In the second half of the twentieth century, no American president defined his political era as did Ronald Reagan. He ushered in an age that extolled smaller government, tax cuts, and strong defense, and to this day politicians of both political parties operate within the parameters of the world he made. His eight years in office from 1981 to 1989 were a time of economic crisis and recovery, a new American assertiveness abroad, and an engagement with the Soviet Union that began in conflict but moved in surprising new directions. Jacob Weisberg provides a bracing portrait of America's fortieth president and the ideas that animated his political career, offering a fresh psychological interpretation and showing that there was more to Reagan than the usual stereotypes. Reagan, he observes, was a staunch conservative but was also unafraid to compromise and cut deals where necessary. And Reagan espoused a firm belief, just as firm as his belief in small government and strong defense, that nuclear weapons were immoral and ought to be eliminated. Weisberg argues that these facets of Reagan were too often ignored in his time but reveal why his presidency turned out to be so consequential. In the years since Reagan left office, he has been cast in marble by the Republican Party and dismissed by the Democrats. Weisberg shows why we need to move past these responses if we wish truly to appreciate his accomplishments and his legacy.

The conservative icon who reshaped American politics and laid the groundwork for the end of the Cold War In the second half of the twentieth century, no American president defined his political era as did Ronald Reagan."