An Extra Pair of Hands

A deeply moving story of what it means to care for those we love - by bestselling author Kate Mosse, writer of Labyrinth and The City of Tears

'A truly beautiful book, shot through with honesty, heartbreak and joy. I loved it' Adam Kay

'Luminous with love' Nicci Gerrard

'A celebration of ageing, womanhood and what love really means' Christie Watson, author of The Language of Kindness

As our population ages, more and more of us find ourselves caring for parents and loved ones - some 8.8 million people in the UK. An invisible army of carers holding families together.

Here, Kate Mosse tells her personal story of finding herself as a carer in middle age: first, helping her mother look after her beloved father through Parkinson's, then supporting her mother in widowhood, and finally as 'an extra pair of hands' for her 90-year-old mother-in-law.

This is a story about the gentle heroism of our carers, about small everyday acts of tenderness, and finding joy in times of crisis. It's about juggling priorities, mind-numbing repetition, about guilt and powerlessness, about grief, and the solace of nature when we're exhausted or at a loss. It is also about celebrating older people, about learning to live differently - and think differently about ageing.

But most of all, it's a story about love.

'A brilliant read that celebrates both the fragility and resilience of human existence. It sheds light on various forms of humble, gentle heroism that often go unnoticed and remain untold' Elif Shafak

'A meditation on caring and ageing that lifts the spirits without pulling punches' Ian Rankin

'A beautiful, emotional and timely read' Matt Haig

'Questions how and why we fetishise independence when the reality of human experience is always interdependence. Here is a book that sees, in this, a cause for celebration' Guardian Book of the Day