“Your book is describing my life. THANK YOU!!! I am, like you were, the child who is handling my dad's journey though assisted living and extended care. Like you, my brother is completely absent. Like you, I have found this experience to be infuriating, depressing, enraging, and beyond heartbreaking. But also so goddamn SLIPPERY! Your book has helped me name what has seemed individual and amorphous (and avoidable if only I had been better prepared), and page by page I am feeling more oriented. I am still enraged, infuriated, heartbroken but somehow knowing this is not an individual failure (of the care home staff, my now, my dad's) is huge. Thank you!”

Anonymous Person but it feels like I know her.

“I read it in two days, taking notes and thinking how helpful it would be to my friend Michael who is his 99 year old mother’s caretaker and has a brother like Susan’s. The complex issue of sibling relationships in the face of parental decline is examined with great honesty, humility and humour as are all of Susan’s feelings and reactions to the new role she finds herself in. The questions Susan asks herself about how she is relating to her brother inspired me to reexamine how I was relating to and writing about my own brother.

Susan puts Long Term Care and societal and government attitudes towards the aging under the microscope and demands better from all of us. She uses herself and her family as the framework to present information and concepts, the personal story providing momentum and keeping it real. The drawings are simple and fun, lightening the serious content. It’s not a subject any of us really want to deal with, but aging, illness and dying are part of life and we need to find compassionate ways to handle them with care."

Storme Arden, Must-admired Artist and Art Friend, Former Publisher of Visual Arts News

“Your story was so beautiful . . . Susan, I credit you so much with your story helping me to heal my story (always an ongoing process, but it was really jump started by your book) so thank you from the bottom of my heart. I found joy for the first time in over a year!”

Lavender Sage (Lisa K), a fellow person who cared for someone throughout a fraught and inadequate nursing home experience

“Brutally honest. Forthright. Informative. Insightful. At times funny. At times heartbreakingly sad. Always a story thread that wove it’s way into my heart and mind. Lots to think about.

I just want to reach out to Susan and give her a big hug for having the courage to tell such a personal story. I want to applaud Susan for using this creative genre to express her every emotion. I hope the act of making these drawings gave her much needed stress relief as she navigated a system we are learning is less than ideal, often negligent and woefully derelict in caring for our seniors when they need “the system” the most. Parts of me were entertained but most of me just wanted to call every politician to rail at the system that currently exists and needs a WHOLE LOT of fixing.

I have Post-it noted so many pages that struck a cord with me. I laughed, I cried. I wanted to scream at all the injustices Susan and her Mother endured. I know this happens for far too many families, my own included, and I hope that when people read this book - and you should read it - they will find comfort in knowing they are not alone in all they have gone through/are going through.”

Lana Shupe, Esteemed Canadian author!

“I also want to commend you on your book! The graphics spoke to me on so many levels having been working at Capital Health when your mother was in long term care. All the positive buzz words that were floating around at the time did not necessarily translate into better care for our clients. I felt like laughing and crying through the whole book! I . . . recognized that your experience as a concerned daughter was very similar to many other daughters advocating for better care for their loved ones. I was also touched by your willingness to be vulnerable in sharing your story so honestly. My first reaction was “every spiritual care provider should be required to read this book.”

Buffy Harper, Former End-of-Life Clergy Member, Lovely Person

“Attention all hipsters, know-it-alls, and the like: We are all growing old and will die. Yes, it’s as simple as that. One way or another, we are all going to die. It’s the ultimate equalizer. If we care about social justice, then we must care about issues related to aging. I encourage you to read Susan MacLeod's new graphic memoir, DYING FOR ATTENTION. […] This is one of the best works in comics you can be reading right now for the reasons that I spell out in my review.”

Henry Chamberlain, Artist, Writer, Very Smart Person

“Thank you for sharing such an honest memoir about your life and your mam. Lots of things within touched me and to be honest made me reflect on my own relationship with my family, my father in particular… due to my own unrealistic expectations of what way I want him to show his love . . . If we as a society and government don’t care for the front line staff, then how do we envisage a service that will respect and value us as we all age?”

Caroline Hyland Illustrations, Dublin, Keen Instagram User, Very Smart Person

“Just finished your book. BRAVA! BRAVA! BRAVA! Such a tremendous work. Deep wisdom. Humor. Brave vulnerability. Authenticity. I absolutely loved it. Really, brilliant. Well done, Susan!!!”

Julie Gieseke, Very, Very Smart Person in California

“Just a quick note of thanks for the brilliant work you did on your novel, Dying for Attention. Peggy, my wife and I are so appreciative for your honesty, willingness to share strengths and frailties, and your keen and powerful attention to emotions. We are living with similar stresses caring for two older brothers living in supported housing and assisted living. It brings out our best and our worst. We are fortunate to have each other to share screams of frustration, laughter at our foibles, anger at the broken system of care, and of course. sadness from the loss of connection. You deserve a million hugs. Consider it virtually done from our end here in Massachusetts! Love to you.”

John and Peggy, Clearly an Intelligent Couple

“As I read your book, I was filled with an enormous sense of gratitude for your honesty and integrity about your relationship with your brother. In that period of my life, I was fortunate to have the kinds of close relationships that allowed me to share with friends exactly what was going on. The gratitude I felt is for the women (mostly) who live without the support they need and who have your book as validation for their experiences. This is a gift.”

Jane, Beloved and Smart Relative

“I just finished reading Susan MacLeod’a new book, Dying for Attention: A Graphic Memoir of Nursing Home Care (Conundrum Press, 2021).

And wow, is it ever good. Stunningly good.

Susan tells the story of her mother’s journey into long-term care. But it’s more than that - it’s really a family story, and there are so many questions and tensions, and Susan edges her way towards answers and reconciliation. She never quite finds them, but the journey is the story.

It’s funny, it’s heartfelt, it’s sad, it’s honest and oh so real. I couldn’t put it down.

What’s a “graphic memoir”? It’s like a graphic novel, a genre I started following a few years ago. It’s a drawn story - see the photo. In the old days, we might have called it “comics.” The combination of words and pictures add a unique power, which Susan handles expertly. By the end, it was hard for me to imagine it being done any other way. (I make a brief appearance in the book, but that’s not why I’m so enthusiastic about it. Susan interviewed a bunch of experts, and I shared a few words on the politics of long-term care. My role is very minor.)

If you’re interested at all in ageing parents and their families and how we care for the frail elderly, this is a book you’ll love. I recommend it highly. Well done, Susan. Well done indeed.”

Graham Steele, Lawyer, MLA, Minister, Professor, Very Smart Person

“I read your book a month ago. In one sitting late at night.

It was a real emotional ride. It's almost inappropriate to say I "enjoyed" it, as the subject is so grim. But I was totally drawn in and needed to see the conflict come to its inexorable end.

I was impressed by the countless drawings, which were lively and had a lot of details. I was also amazed at how the nonlinear storytelling gave the book a feeling of pulling you into a maelstrom. In fact, I found myself afterwards doing a plot analysis to find out how I had travelled in circles, yet forward...

I'm glad you published the book and I will be giving away some copies. The subject really does need discussion in our society. All of us will grow old, need care, die. And not all of us are as fortunate as my mother-in-law, who, in good health at 96, has the luxury of being cared for by her daughter in a granny suite. Do I want to count on my own children? How can I prepare?”

Sophie Bieger, Thoughtful Reader, Very Smart Person

“I heard part of an interview you did on CBC and then saw your book at BookMark this week. I bought it and gulped it down quickly. What an achievement! Hearty congratulations to you.

I'd never read a graphic memoir before and was hesitant to try. I think of myself as a ‘word’ person and not as a ‘picture’ person. Your drawings were wonderful - they conveyed so much feeling: the happy, the sorrowful and the vulnerable.

Thank you for tackling the issue of caring for profit in our long-term care homes. My mum was lucky enough to qualify for care at Camp Hill from 2006 - 2009 (having been posted to Gander while a member of the Women's Division of the RCAF in the early 1940's and Newfoundland not then a part of Canada was considered an overseas posting!). Profit/cost never felt like part of the equation there. However, I was very aware of how constrained the care was.

Thank you for Dying for Attention. Well done!”

Nancy Bowes, Voracious Reader, Very Smart Person

“I just finished your book. It is so wonderful. I can’t believe how you were able to get all that in there — the personal, the academic, the system… I will be returning to it again and again.

But what I’d mostly like to say: it is a masterpiece of concise expressive drawing. I’m not sure a story like this could really be told any other way. That brick wall? Is like a bell ringing periodically throughout, reminding us of the futility of communication and the essential need to keep trying, even if we know it won’t work. So economical.

Thanks for writing the book.”

Alison Kent, www.listen-ink.net, Very Smart Person

“I spent the whole afternoon reading your book cover to cover. It’s not like I didn’t know how it ended, I was at the funeral. Susan, it is SO good.”

Nancy Colpitts, Best Friend, Voracious Reader, Very Smart Person

“Hugs to you, dear friend. I have read Dying for Attention and am blown away and deeply moved by your journey … and by the gags.”

Kilby McRae, Best Friend, Voracious Reader, Very Smart Person

“I relate to and appreciate your raw sharing--which to me is uncloaking of the truths of life and families and really, that we’re all just trying to make our way through the days that heap one on top of the other and the point where you think, well, maybe it's all starting to make sense and then… the endings begin to arrive. And then it is, like, ‘What up?’

You told the story of the absolute chaos and heartbreak of aging and aging in care—the multi-layers that prevent, deter, eliminate the ‘care’ component—and the frustrations mining what has become an impenetrable system, existing for itself and not its actual intentions, for multiple reasons.

I also gotta tell you I especially relate to and appreciate the honesty of pages 175 and then 177, daring to speak the unspoken many (that means me) feel inside as we muddle on through the ‘what up?’ of life. I have so many words running through my head after reading… courage and bravery are two—that in spite of it all, you continue to face yourself and challenges and find a way through. You told a TRUTHFUL and un-candy-coated story. (If I say, Bravo, is that okay????) Saying it… bravo."

Karalee Clerk, MFA, Best Friend, Voracious Reader, Professional Writer, Writing Instructor

“I have started reading your book and I hope it is as big a hit as it deserves. I especially appreciate your painting of the family life you grew up in, as context for what came later.

Even my 8-year-old grandson, Ben, is reading your book. He laughs every once in a while or reads something out loud to us, and he was able to tell me what the book is about. He didn't want to leave it here until he visits again, but I wasn't willing to let him take it home and delay my own reading of it!”

Marjorie Willison, Friend, Aging Consultant and Professional Gardener, www.agingwellwithmarjorie.ca

“This book should be required reading for health care leaders. I laughed with you, cried with you, and was inspired by you. A thoughtful and compelling story about a family experience told with humour, honesty, and vulnerability. Congratulations!”

Susan Dunn, Former Co-Worker, Family Caregiver

“Hey Susan, I’ve been meaning to send you an Email for about two weeks and I’m just getting around to it now. I read your graphic novel and I absolutely loved it. It was intensely personal, sad, and funny at the same time. I think it deserves a wider readership as it is a subject that everyone eventually has to deal with and would be invaluable when negotiating the perils of senior care. Truly, it was terrific. I’m very proud of you. Well done!”

Paul Harper, Friend and Voracious Reader

“I find it very moving as a picture of sibling relations. Not to mention the power of the more polemical side. The frame depicting the mountain range of jargon was a view I'm very familiar with. If your parents are still alive you should get this book. If your parents are gone but you have kids, they should get this book from you.”

Ian Greig, Good Friend, Most Intelligent Being

“Dying for Attention, a graphic memoir: It's about Susan's journey through the challenges of her mother's final years in long term care. It's a very personal account but has substantial and meaningful perspective on the limits and lack of resources for elder care. It was a nine-year labour of love, and I found it to be illuminating and humorous with a wide range of emotions and thoughts. I fully recommend it to everyone, whether you have elder relatives in care or not. We are all adjacent to that reality at some point in our lives.”

Jim MacDonald, Friend and Former Neighbour from our Youth

“OMG I ordered Susan's book, it arrived yesterday, and I am blown away. Brilliant. Depressing. Incisive. Horrific. Glorious. Sad. Our care of the elderly walks the line between cruelty and torture and nobody is talking about it -- except Susan MacLeod. Appears to be the same in the US and Canada.

Here in the US, the for-profit homes have mostly been bought up by REITs (real estate investment trusts) formed with one mission: profits. The playbook is to strip-mine wealth from the vulnerable elderly, divert it from their heirs, and deposit it in the bank accounts of investors. The care home staff are the helpless middlemen.

But I see I have slipped from my intent of praising Susan's book. I walked this walk for a mere 2.5 years, how you survive nine years is beyond me. THANK YOU for using your talent to put this story out in the world, in a light enough way that people can bear to talk about it.”

Sarah White, MFA and Admired Former Classmate