The Sandwich Generation refers to the growing numbers of middle-aged people who must care for both children and elderly parents while trying to manage the stress of full-time jobs. Advances in technology and medicine are helping us to live longer - but not without extended care from our families. At the same time, the economic climate is making it difficult for young adults to leave home and start their own lives; they are often 'boomeranged' back to their parents for financial help, emotional support, and accommodation.

In The Family Squeeze, Suzanne Kingsmill and Ben Schlesinger...