Story of old age told with sensitivity, wit and hope

George, aged 70, has an organised and settled life.  He has his routines, sticks to them, and is content.  Then disaster strikes and he finds himself an unwilling resident at the Four Seasons care home, being assessed.    He has a few things to say about that!  

Set in Scotland this is an emotive novel about George, and I really felt I was inside his head when reading it.  First of all there is his distress at finding himself in a care home, which is alleviated (for the reader) by moments of wit.  The staff are caring and helpful, but George doesn’t want help, he just wants out of there.   Carrie, his care worker, does her best to help George, but there is only so much she can do. 

After the sadness of Georges predicament – which was quite scary because of its reality (I was thinking: what if this happens to me in the future!), this grows into an interesting and thought provoking read with positive messages about life and individual attitudes to it.  Can people change their entrenched views and attitudes and why should they?   Is it too late to start again, or even worth thinking about?

As I started reading this I wondered what I was doing reading something so emotive as being forced into a care home, however soon I became involved with the positive messages and the insights into Georges psychology.  George’s memories reveal his past life, and those around him show how worth and value can be brought to an older person’s everyday life.  This is a tough subject, and George’s story is told with sensitivity and wit.  In the last paragraph or so there were a few open ended occurrences, so I guess we’ll be hearing more from George Bunce in the future.   

There is a phrase/way of looking at things in this book, which has really stuck with me, and got me thinking.  You’ll spot it when you read the book, so I won’t reveal it here, but I think it is really an attitude/life changer.  It is this, and the fact that I am still thinking about this book, days after I finished it, that has moved my rating up to 5*s.  A difficult subject, but so worth reading! 

Set in:  Firth of Clyde, West Scotland

My rating:  5 out of 5

Publisher:  Spellbound Books

Publication Date:  18 April 2022

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases – at no extra cost to yourself