Help Wanted: Wednesdays Only

Lorraine Douglas is the youth services co-ordinator at the Winnipeg
Public Library.

Thirteen-year-old Mark Rogers is embarrassed by his grandfather, Luigi,
who has Alzheimer’s disease. Luigi is often found wandering on the
street and is so confused he wears two pairs of pants and cannot
remember his family. Mark’s mother decides that it would be best to
move in with Luigi, but this causes turmoil in Mark’s life. He has to
change schools and leave his friends. At the new school, because he is
small, he is often picked on by the bully Randy Smits. Mark gets a
Wednesdays-only delivery job but, when his grandfather wanders away from
home, Mark’s job is jeopardized. Then, when he can’t deliver the
flyers because of Randy’s bullying, his boss fires him. But later his
former boss comes up with a job-sharing idea that gets Mark reinstated
and solves a number of problems.

This is a well-written novel that perceptively captures the devastating
impact Alzheimer’s disease can have on a family and realistically
portrays the fears and frustrations of those dealing with the disease.
Recommended.