Who Cares?

"Makes the case with passion, spirit and humor, for the full personhood of the elderly and disabled." Sara Bolder, Co-Producer of the Oscar-nominated documentary 'Crip Camp'

Who Cares? is the story of a lively place where old people go to die. Set in Michigan in 1960, the Woodruff Home for the Aged is a public facility for the indigent elderly. When a sinking economy prompts city officials to consider a private developer's proposal to convert the home into a pricey retirement residence, panic sets in. The residents fear displacement; the staff fear unemployment.

As the clock ticks, the novel follows the city's contentious deliberations, the outlandish efforts to derail the sale, and the complex web of intimacy and intrigue among its characters: Miss Mamie Martine, a feisty octogenarian with an encyclopedic knowledge of film, and her rival, Mr. J. T. Hillenbrand, a once-wealthy nonagenarian ruined by the Depression; Jilly Duprey, Hillenbrand's biracial great-granddaughter locked in a power struggle with city manager Hugh Pepper; Laurel Robbins, the home's idealistic director, and Rupert Boyle, the well-meaning custodian who resists her reforms; and Mamie's nephew Simon Walpole, an amateur sleuth digging up dirt on Franklin Savoy, the home's shady would-be buyer.

Is the title a cynical shrug-or a plea for dignity? As brisk and surprising as a spry senior citizen, Who Cares? will make you laugh, cry, and think twice about the value of a life well lived.

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Who Cares?

"Makes the case with passion, spirit and humor, for the full personhood of the elderly and disabled." Sara Bolder, Co-Producer of the Oscar-nominated documentary 'Crip Camp'

Who Cares? is the story of a lively place where old people go to die. Set in Michigan in 1960, the Woodruff Home for the Aged is a public facility for the indigent elderly. When a sinking economy prompts city officials to consider a private developer's proposal to convert the home into a pricey retirement residence, panic sets in. The residents fear displacement; the staff fear unemployment.

As the clock ticks, the novel follows the city's contentious deliberations, the outlandish efforts to derail the sale, and the complex web of intimacy and intrigue among its characters: Miss Mamie Martine, a feisty octogenarian with an encyclopedic knowledge of film, and her rival, Mr. J. T. Hillenbrand, a once-wealthy nonagenarian ruined by the Depression; Jilly Duprey, Hillenbrand's biracial great-granddaughter locked in a power struggle with city manager Hugh Pepper; Laurel Robbins, the home's idealistic director, and Rupert Boyle, the well-meaning custodian who resists her reforms; and Mamie's nephew Simon Walpole, an amateur sleuth digging up dirt on Franklin Savoy, the home's shady would-be buyer.

Is the title a cynical shrug-or a plea for dignity? As brisk and surprising as a spry senior citizen, Who Cares? will make you laugh, cry, and think twice about the value of a life well lived.

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Who Cares?

Who Cares?

by Ann S Epstein
Who Cares?

Who Cares?

by Ann S Epstein

Overview

"Makes the case with passion, spirit and humor, for the full personhood of the elderly and disabled." Sara Bolder, Co-Producer of the Oscar-nominated documentary 'Crip Camp'

Who Cares? is the story of a lively place where old people go to die. Set in Michigan in 1960, the Woodruff Home for the Aged is a public facility for the indigent elderly. When a sinking economy prompts city officials to consider a private developer's proposal to convert the home into a pricey retirement residence, panic sets in. The residents fear displacement; the staff fear unemployment.

As the clock ticks, the novel follows the city's contentious deliberations, the outlandish efforts to derail the sale, and the complex web of intimacy and intrigue among its characters: Miss Mamie Martine, a feisty octogenarian with an encyclopedic knowledge of film, and her rival, Mr. J. T. Hillenbrand, a once-wealthy nonagenarian ruined by the Depression; Jilly Duprey, Hillenbrand's biracial great-granddaughter locked in a power struggle with city manager Hugh Pepper; Laurel Robbins, the home's idealistic director, and Rupert Boyle, the well-meaning custodian who resists her reforms; and Mamie's nephew Simon Walpole, an amateur sleuth digging up dirt on Franklin Savoy, the home's shady would-be buyer.

Is the title a cynical shrug-or a plea for dignity? As brisk and surprising as a spry senior citizen, Who Cares? will make you laugh, cry, and think twice about the value of a life well lived.

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9783988322364
Publisher: Vine Leaves Press
Publication date: 11/25/2025
Pages: 284
Product dimensions: 5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.71(d)

About the Author

Ann S. Epstein writes novels, short stories, memoir, and essays. Her awards include a Pushcart Prize nomination for creative nonfiction, Walter Sullivan prize in fiction, and Editors' Choice selection by Historical Novel Review. Her other novels are On the Shore, Tazia and Gemma, A Brain. A Heart. The Nerve., The Great Stork Derby, One Person's Loss, and The Sister Knot. Her work also appears in North American Review, Sewanee Review, PRISM International, Ascent, The Long Story, and elsewhere. Inaddition to writing, she has a PhD in developmental psychology, MFA in fiber art, and certification as an end-of-life doula. Visit: www.asewovenwords.com.
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