Untangling Dementia Themes in Teen Fiction with Krysten Lindsay Hager

The Whole Care Network

Today’s guest is Krysten Lindsay Hager, who writes funny, charming, irresistible dramas for tweens and teens. Her stories are about friendship, self-esteem, fitting in, frenemies, crushes, fame, first loves, and values. She also writes about dementia, especially Lewy Body, in the teen novels “Competing with the Star,” a Readers' Favorite Book Award Finalist, and “Dating the It Guy.” Krysten’s experience with dementia started in her sophomore year in high school when her grandfather was diagnosed with “hardening of the arteries.” She helped her parents provide care for him, which affected her college years and led her to write “Competing with the Star.” Many years later her father was diagnosed with Lewy Body dementia which inspired “Dating the It Guy.” In this episode we discuss why fiction is an excellent medium for educating teens about serious topics, why Robin Williams’ story helped her understood her father’s illness, how the vulnerability of dementia affects loving relationships, and the positivity to be found in saying “the long goodbye.” Read Krysten’s AlzAuthors Post: https://alzauthors.com/2017/02/01/krysten-lindsay-hager-how-young-adult-fiction-helps-heal-and-educate/ Start reading “Competing with the Star” https://amzn.to/2JJjIAs and “Dating the It Guy” https://amzn.to/33CEcCk now! (Note: We are an Amazon Associate and may receive a small commission from book sales.) Connect with Krysten Lindsay Hager Website: https://www.krystenlindsay.com/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/KrystenLindsayHagerAuthor Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/krystenlindsay/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/KrystenLindsay Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/krystenlindsay/ YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClIQCsRcKc97-25oXvabZ8A Each season our podcast brings you six of our authors sharing their dementia journeys. Please subscribe so you don’t miss a word. If our authors’ stories move you please leave a review. And don’t forget to share our podcast with family and friends in need of knowledge, comfort and support on their own dementia journeys. AlzAuthors is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization totally reliant on donations to do what we do. Your generosity will help cover our many operating costs, which include website hosting and maintenance fees, service charges to keep things running smoothly, marketing expenditures to promote our authors, improve our reach, expand our content, and more. Our ongoing work supports our mission to lift the silence and stigma of Alzheimer’s and other dementias. To sustain our efforts please visit https://alzauthors.com/donate/ . Thank you for listening.