We all hoard to a certain extent. If you can keep it in check it might be considered collecting—baseball cards, antique clocks, movie ephemera (I collect words!). But when it gets out of control then you’ve got problems. Paxton, a professional cleaner, divides hoarders into 5 categories and delineates the warning signs of escalating trouble and offers suggestions for coping (and hopefully controlling) the situation for both the hoarder and those that care about them. A frightening, yet compassionate, look at a growing epidemic.

Recommended by Jan