hospice care

Seventeen-year-old Molly, her mother in a hospice and her father having deserted the family years earlier, is forced to go live with her older sister Amanda, and even though the two girls have always had an explosive relationship and have never been close, they must find a way to overcome their differences and learn to support one another.

Jon Katz shares the story of a difficult year during which he was forced to face a trauma from the past, and tells how he was helped through his struggles by his dog Izzy, who works with him as trained hospice volunteers, and a new black Labrador puppy named Lenore, who gives boundless love to every creature she meets.

The author details her life in the three weeks prior to the death of her mother, and muses about the hospice nurse, her grandfather, medication, spirituality, and more.