This Last Adventure

by Ryan Dalton

Overview

When Archie's beloved grandpa is diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, Archie desperately wants to slow the progression of his grandpa's memory loss.

Using Grandpa's old journal entries as inspiration, he creates shared role-playing fantasies with epic quests for them to tackle together—allowing Grandpa to live in the present and stay in touch with his fading memories. But as Grandpa's condition gradually worsens, Archie must come to terms with what's happening to his hero. The limits of the fantasies, revelations about Grandpa's past, and a school project about the future force Archie to grapple with what it truly means to live a life worth remembering.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781541599284
Publisher:	Lerner Publishing Group
Publication date:	02/01/2022
Pages:	304
Sales rank:	1,103,414
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 7.75(h) x 0.95(d)
Lexile:	650L (what's this?)
Age Range:	10 - 11 Years

About the Author

Ryan Dalton spends his time thinking up stories when he’s not wearing a cape and fighting crime. He’s a singer, a voiceover artist, a pretty decent amateur chef, and a lover of all things geek. Ryan lives in an invisible spaceship that’s currently hovering over St. Louis, Missouri. He is also the author of the Time Shift Trilogy.

Editorial Reviews

"Dalton deftly explores the anguish of a family when a beloved father and grandfather begins to lose his memories as he faces the onset of Alzheimer's. One morning eighth-grader Archie Reese's grandfather doesn't recognize him. Archie, uneasy and disturbed, can't figure out a way to approach his mother about this event. Since he and his grandfather used to engage in fabulous fantasies together, Archie tries to pull his grandfather back from the fog by engaging him in daring action fantasies based on his Granddad's life-long experiences as a firefighter. Archie begins to discriminate between Granddad's "real self" and his "lost self". At the same time Archie, a scholarship student, tries to navigate social life at his private school more adeptly; he may even want a girlfriend! In the effort to complete a student project "what you want to be", Archie makes closer friendships with some students he didn't trust, finds that having a girl as a friend is possible, and finally determines his personal focus for his project. Meanwhile, his aunts and uncles and mother come to recognize that their father, Archie's grandfather, may need more help than they can provide, but Granddad has made his own plans. The characters, adults and students, are realistically portrayed in their family and friend relationships as are the symptoms of Alzheimer's and family responses to them. This is an excellent book for students who are close to their grandparents and wonder about Alzheimer's. Could be valuable for school counselors to have on hand and for librarians to recommend for students with questions. An Author's Note explains the origins of the book in the author's own grandfather's battle with Alzheimer's and Questions for Discussion make this book useful in a book club or counseling group. Reviewer Rating: 5" —Children's Literature

From the Publisher

02/25/2022

Gr 5–8—Eighth grader Archie and his grandfather have an exceptionally close relationship. Archie and his mother have lived at his grandfather's house his whole life, and the older man is the closest thing to a father Archie has ever known. He's shocked when his grandfather does not recognize him one morning, and the family is devastated by his ultimate Alzheimer's diagnosis. Archie and his mother have very different ways of coping with his Grandpa's memory loss; his mother avoids thinking about it, dating so often Archie can't keep track of her dates' names. Archie is frequently left alone "in charge" of his grandfather. On bad days, when his grandfather is disoriented, Archie revives an old game the two used to play of reenacting adventures, sometimes using his grandfather's journal entries for prompts. This tactic ultimately backfires, and makes Archie realize there is little he can do to help slow the disease. Balancing a complex home life with school is sometimes challenging for Archie; he is navigating typical 13-year-old challenges around crushes and identity while carrying a larger burden. His supportive friend group helps ground Archie, keeping him a relatable character learning to navigate his feelings and relationships. This poignant novel explores complex and difficult issues with hope and humor. Characters' evolving feelings and self-realization are realistically portrayed, as are conflict and resolutions between characters. The fantasy sections of the book, where Charlie and his grandfather reenact adventures, are imaginatively written and provide readers, along with Charlie and his grandfather, a respite from the heartbreak of watching Grandpa deteriorate. Charlie and his family are white. Charlie's best friend is Japanese and Hawaiian, his friend Desta's parents immigrated from Ethiopia, and his friend Kamiko is Japanese American. VERDICT This novel sensitively explores difficult issues with hope and warmth, creating believable characters readers will care about.—Juliet Morefield

School Library Journal

2021-11-16
Archie is devastated by his beloved grandfather’s Alzheimer’s and makes up fantasy adventures for the two of them to share.

Eighth grader Archie and his mother live with his Grandpa; Archie’s father left before he was born, and Grandma Ella has passed away. Grandpa is a Vietnam veteran, a retired firefighter who had many adventures but hid secrets about distressing aspects of his life. He wrote diligently in his private journal about good times and bad. Grandpa finally passes the journal on to Archie—with a promise that he only look at the entries he marked. As Grandpa’s Alzheimer’s worsens, Archie is determined to do everything he can to keep him functioning, and he spins fantastical tales that include dragons and pirates. But even Archie realizes that these episodes won’t solve the real problem. Archie’s love also takes the form of a school project relaying Grandpa’s life story; he even finds a woman whom Grandpa rescued from a fire. Interactions with his peers provide an important catalyst for Archie’s growing maturity. The combination of fantasy and realism is not always successful, and the imagined stories feel like interruptions. However, the grandfather-grandson relationship is heartfelt, and the middle school friendships are convincing. Whiteness is assumed as the default for Archie and his family; his friend group is described as racially diverse.

A touching story about intergenerational love that doesn’t quite come together. (author's note) (Fiction. 10-14)

Kirkus Reviews