The Woman in the Middle by Milly Johnson

The Woman in the Middle by Milly Johnson
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 1 day

Pages - 400

Source - Bought

Publisher - Simon and Schuster

Blurb from Goodreads

Shay Bastable is the woman in the middle. She is part of the sandwich generation – caring for her parents and her children, supporting her husband Bruce, holding them all together and caring for them as best she can.

Then the arrival of a large orange skip on her mother’s estate sets in motion a cataclysmic series of events which leads to the collapse of Shay’s world. She is forced to put herself first for a change.

But in order to move forward with her present, Shay needs to make sense of her past. And so she returns to the little village she grew up in, to uncover the truth about what happened to her when she was younger. And in doing so, she discovers that sometimes you have to hit rock bottom to find the only way is up.


My Review

Shay is just one of those good wholesome people. Married for double figures, grown kids, her mum has dementia so she is in and out caring for her whilst visiting her dad who has never recovered after an acute medical emergency. Her sister could be doing more but she is one of those people who do the bare minimum and has a superior attitude about it and toward pretty much everyone. A big anniversary is coming up for Shay and she intends to make the most of it with her husband. Fate always likes to fling a curve ball and Shay is about to get a few.

Oooft I found myself getting a wee bit emotional and raging at some points in this. Some people are just horror bags and Shay is so so nice, I honestly wanted to reach in and punch one of the characters. So very true to life and I know and had to endure having a bamstick like this character (not Shay) in my life. Some people are just so selfish and self absorbed, nasty and have no concern for anyone else other than what they can get out of them, can you tell it struck a nerve?! I love when a character evokes an emotive response & it made me feel even more for Shay.

Johnson always weaves multi issues or themes in her books, people you like, love, hate or in this case want to punch! I have read most of her books and always eagerly await the next. I need to check my Goodreads and see what ones I have still to read. If you want to ditch your own reality and lose yourselves in someone else's lives/dramas you will love this, 4.5/ for me!

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Love and Care by Shaun Deeney

Love & Care by Shaun Deeney
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Time taken to read - 3 days

Pages - 326

Publisher - Endeavor

Source - Vine

Blurb from Goodreads

Shaun is determined to put the past behind him. No longer brooding on his divorce, and with his two daughters grown up, he is making a fresh start in a new country. And hoping to find love one more time. Until the sudden death of his father changes everything.

With his mother in a care home, Shaun knows he has to make a choice: leave his mother there, or give up his new-found freedom to look after her himself in the home she once shared with his father.

Love and Care charts his first year caring for his mother who has Parkinson's dementia; a woman he loves deeply but realises he hardly knows as he tries to connect with her through music, food and everyday joys. Can he face the challenges and prove the doubters wrong? And what will the decision mean for his chances of finding love?

Writing with raw honesty and humour, Shaun reflects on his own relationships - as a son, a father, and as a man. He explores our ability to keep hope alive, to forgive and be forgiven. Along the way he learns that letting go may just be the most valuable lesson in love.

Framed by the changing seasons, Love and Care is a story of redemption, and a celebration of our capacity to love, in all its forms.




My Review

Thisis Shaun's very honest and open journey about his decision and experiences of taking care of his mother. She had been in a care home, when Sean's father passes he decided to move home and bring his mother back to where she knows. She has Parkinson's dementia, Shaun has never been a carer, everyone is a skeptic, this is his and his mother's journey.

This isn't like many of the books I have read from true story healthcare/memoir type stories, whilst it does address the caring aspect there is a lot that does not. We follow Shaun through his decision, how he goes about it and the obstacles he faces. Experiences with mum getting an infection, trying to get carers, getting the home ready however it also concentrates on Shaun. Shaun's journey, thoughts, feelings, past and present, doubts, feelings, trying to date whilst taking on his mother's care. Money worries, paperwork, his past relationship with his father and everything in between.

The book splits into the four seasons and the firsts looking after his mother. It is a very honest account, his concerns, failings, worries - it very much looks at Shaun and how much he takes on, how being a carer is a huge undertaking. Financial, emotional, physical - if you have never taken on care for another adult who has needs it opens your eyes to how much it takes from you. It is very rewarding too and Shaun details some of the battles he wins on account of his mother, her needs and what he feels is right for her.

There are some touching moments and he has done an amazing thing for his mother, bringing her back to her own home. I think this is one of the first of these books where, I felt, it is more Shaun's story than his mothers. Most of the books I have read are focused on the patient, loved one, cared for individual, it was different and interesting to see the person behind the loved/cared for one.

It is like a diary, not as in written like a diary although it is written in first person, more I mean it is an outpouring from Shaun, of his journey, the caring journey through the eyes of the carer, 3.5/5 for me.

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