Take a look at these recommended books on Parkinson’s, available to borrow for free with your library card. These books can be reserved to collect from any library in Suffolk.
A physical collection will also be available to view in-person at Stowmarket Library.
Want more suggested books? Take a look at our recommendations.
An Extra Pair of Hands: A Story of Caring, Ageing and Everyday Acts of Love
Kate Mosse
Ten years ago, Kate Mosse began to help her heroic mother care for her beloved father, who was suffering from Parkinson’s disease.
In this lyrical and humorous book, she reflects on more than a decade of multi-generational living and being an ‘extra pair of hands’, first for her parents and now for her wonderful 90-year-old mother-in-law.
Interspersed with snapshots of the overlooked voices of carers of the past – from poems, diaries and folk remedies that have survived the centuries – Kate looks at the contemporary landscape of care in a world of slashed budgets and at the women bearing the brunt of austerity as they battle to hold families of all shapes and sizes together.
No Time Like the Future: An Optimist Considers Mortality
Michael J. Fox
The entire world knows Michael J. Fox as Marty McFly, the teenage sidekick of Doc Brown in ‘Back to the Future’; as Alex P. Keaton in ‘Family Ties’; and through numerous other movie roles and guest appearances on shows such as ‘The Good Wife’.
Diagnosed at age 29, Michael is equally engaged in Parkinson’s advocacy work, raising global awareness of the disease and helping find a cure through The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research, the world’s leading non-profit funder of PD science. His two previous memoirs, ‘Lucky Man’ and ‘Always Looking Up’, dealt with how he came to terms with the illness, all the while exhibiting his iconic optimism.
In ‘No Time Like the Future’, Michael shares personal stories and observations about illness and health, ageing, the strength of family and friends, and how our perceptions about time affect the way we approach mortality.
Music as Medicine: How We Can Harness its Therapeutic Power
Daniel J. Levitin
We are only just beginning to appreciate the healing power of music. In recent years, a wave of scientific research has upended everything we once knew about its effects on our brains – not only in reducing stress, but also in enhancing cognitive function, slowing the spread of neurodegenerative diseases like Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, even strengthening our immune systems.
Here, a neuroscientist and celebrated musician introduces a bold new paradigm for medical treatment, rooted in the unexpected influence of music on our minds and bodies. From explaining how ‘rhythmic auditory stimulation’ can fight multiple sclerosis, to examining why Tracy Chapman’s songs might just help cure PTSD, Professor Daniel Levitin offers surprising insights into the new science of music as medicine.
Bend, Don’t Break: A Memoir of Endurance
Frank O’Mara
Limerick man Frank O’Mara had the athletics career most only dream of, competing for Ireland in three Olympic Games and breaking Irish and world records. After his retirement from running, he settled in the US with his family and made his way to the top of the telecoms industry.
Then at age 48, his life changed forever when he was diagnosed with early onset Parkinson’s disease. The progression was rapid, causing severe muscle cramps, tremors, and eventually the inability to walk and at times even speak.
In this inspiring memoir, Frank recounts his battle with Parkinson’s. At first in denial, he eventually found the strength that made him successful as an athlete and in business – using determination, and humour to weather the worst phases of the disease. He learned to face each hurdle as he came to it: to bend, but not break.
Think Before You Think: Understanding Your Brain’s Mission Control
Dr Adrian Owen
Our brains are miraculous things. Through a set of processes called executive functions, they drive everything over the course of our lives, allowing us to create and retrieve memories, understand our own and others’ emotions, plan our short- and long-term goals, and much more.
Drawing on gripping case studies and cutting-edge research, neuroscientist Adrian Owen maps out the architecture of our brains and these executive functions. From encounters with memory champions, athletes who have suffered multiple concussions and patients with conditions such as ADHD, autism, Parkinson’s and Alzheimer’s, he reveals the importance of these functions not only to the potential of our brains but to our very ways of being.
Twitch: My Life with Parkinson’s Disease
Annmarie O’Connor
Remarkably honest, brutally heroic and darkly humorous memoir following a devastating diagnosis of early onset Parkinson’s disease. ‘Twitch’ is a frank and funny memoir about picking up the pieces when personal tragedy hits.
In 2021, Irish Examiner columnist, stylist, author and podcaster Annmarie O’Connor was diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease, an incurable neurodegenerative condition broadly affecting movement and mental health.
Though she is no longer working as a stylist as part of her career due to Parkinson’s complications, ‘Twitch’ outlines her journey from a life-altering diagnosis to becoming an activist and agent of change.
Just One More Question: Stories From a Life in Neurology
Niall Tubridy
As a trainee doctor, fascinated by the ways the brain and nervous system signal problems with the body’s wiring, Niall Tubridy fell in love with neurology. This was high stakes detective work where answers could be life-changing.
The young doctor who relished the intellectual puzzle soon became even more intrigued by the human stories behind each set of symptoms. And he found his own character tested. How do you handle such high pressure work – often with sad outcomes for patients – and remain grounded and positive? Can you?
‘Just One More Question’ is the story of Niall Tubridy’s life in neurology. It includes gripping accounts of his patients – encounters that are, by turn, moving, dramatic and funny – and using simple and illuminating language he explains well-known conditions such as multiple sclerosis, Parkinson’s disease and motor neurone disease.
The Tremolo Diaries
Justin Currie
While touring America in 2022, frontman and bassist of legendary Scottish rock band Del Amitri Justin Currie noticed that something wasn’t right after developing a tremor in his right arm. Following a visit to a neurologist in Glasgow, he was told that he had early onset Parkinson’s disease.
But rather than surrendering to his diagnosis, Justin decided to get back on the road and continue touring. This volume chronicles what it’s like for a jobbing musician to be told they have Parkinson’s. It is divided into two parts, with the first half offering strikingly honest glimpses into Justin’s life following his diagnosis through diary entries he kept on tour in the US, while the latter half traces Del Amitri’s 2024 European tour with the band recording their eighth album.
This is a compellingly stark reflection on receiving a life-changing diagnosis.
Sophie From Romania: What a Rescue Dog Taught Me About Patience, Love and Hope
Rory Cellan-Jones
In January 2022, the Cellan-Jones-Coyle family said goodbye to their beloved elderly Collie Cross, Cabbage. Newly retired, Rory had become inseparable from her during daily pandemic walks which alleviated his Parkinson’s Disease symptoms.
After a grief-stricken year, Rory and his wife Diane contemplated opening up their hearts again and came across a dog listing for ‘a kind girl who loves everybody and is just looking for her forever home’. Bright-eyed, big-eared and trembling, Sophie arrives in London in a van from Central Europe on 17th December.
‘Sophie from Romania’ follows the journey of her adoption – from her battles with anxiety, to the joys of play and her first foray outside – as Rory and Diane work with expert dog trainer Si to win Sophie’s trust, and navigate Rory’s Parkinson’s diagnosis.
My Degeneration: A Journey Through Parkinson’s
Peter Dunlap-Shohl
At the age of forty-three, former Anchorage Daily News staff cartoonist Peter Dunlap-Shohl was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease, a disorder that, among other things, can rob a person of their ability to speak or write and degrades their ability to deal with complexity.
In ‘My Degeneration’, Dunlap-Shohl recounts his attempt to come to grips with the ‘malicious whimsy’ of this chronic, progressive, and disabling disorder with his characteristic humor and passion. This graphic novel tracks the author’s journey through depression, juggling medications and weathering their side effects, the impact of the diagnosis on his personal relationships, and the raft of mental and physical changes wrought by the disease.
An Emerald Guide to Explaining Parkinson’s
Doreen Jarrett
This is a comprehensive guide to all aspects of Parkinson’s and issues affecting Parkinson’s sufferers.
It gives advice on techniques for coping with the diagnosis, finding the right doctors, diets and, overall, dealing with the condition and the attendant stress.
Polish 
English 
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Romanian 
Portuguese 
Bengali