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3.48 AVERAGE
3.48 AVERAGE
Growing Old by Elizabeth Marshall Thomas is a free NetGalley ebook that I read in late March.
Marshall Thomas is chatty, talking around, then through a subject, like meeting a family member at a reunion that you haven’t seen in years, then, when you chat them up and ask what they’re doing and they respond with a full 360-degree eye roll, and respond with this book. It's vignettes of her life, memories that reach up to the surface about death and mortality, memorializing the dead, living in a community, yet being alone; having more time, more things, but, sometimes, less people; confusion toward modern culture, being physically and emotionally careful; and time being an odd, relative spectrum.
Marshall Thomas is chatty, talking around, then through a subject, like meeting a family member at a reunion that you haven’t seen in years, then, when you chat them up and ask what they’re doing and they respond with a full 360-degree eye roll, and respond with this book. It's vignettes of her life, memories that reach up to the surface about death and mortality, memorializing the dead, living in a community, yet being alone; having more time, more things, but, sometimes, less people; confusion toward modern culture, being physically and emotionally careful; and time being an odd, relative spectrum.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
I read this because I'm having issues with aging and death. Not sure this helped as much as I wanted it to, but the author seems like I would be friends with her.
This is a must-read book regardless of your age – it is life-affirming, sad in some places, and amusing in others. If you have any older relatives, you really must read this book. So much of it is too true according to the seniors in my life. It was eye opening to say the least.
Thanks to Harper and Edelweiss for an eARC.
Thanks to Harper and Edelweiss for an eARC.
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
Good book for someone approaching end of life issues.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death
"If I'm about to die or if I'm dead when this book is published, I'm hoping the publisher will put THE AUTHOR DIED OF BAD HABITS in big red letters under my name on the cover."
The bad habit Elizabeth Marshall Thomas is referring to is cigarette smoking, which is a recurring topic to remind her (and us) that after all we are only human. And perhaps what really imparts grace upon us as we age is the ability to find acceptance and humor.
If you expect a 'how to' book you will be disappointed, although there are some gems, such as the contents of the letter addressed to her children and pinned to her kitchen wall in the event of her demise.
This book is like a conversation with a dear friend, sharing both sorrows and laughter, as she contemplates how she is navigating old age (the author is 88) and still thumbing her nose at convention. The picture on the dust jacket of the book is priceless.
I read this slim book in one sitting. Highly recommended.
The bad habit Elizabeth Marshall Thomas is referring to is cigarette smoking, which is a recurring topic to remind her (and us) that after all we are only human. And perhaps what really imparts grace upon us as we age is the ability to find acceptance and humor.
If you expect a 'how to' book you will be disappointed, although there are some gems, such as the contents of the letter addressed to her children and pinned to her kitchen wall in the event of her demise.
This book is like a conversation with a dear friend, sharing both sorrows and laughter, as she contemplates how she is navigating old age (the author is 88) and still thumbing her nose at convention. The picture on the dust jacket of the book is priceless.
I read this slim book in one sitting. Highly recommended.
dark
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
It was a little too stream-of-consciousness for my taste. I enjoyed reading about aging, growing old, and stories from the author’s life. It was darker than I expected and talked more about death than living at times, which I didn’t see coming, but in retrospect maybe should have. The book was a lot more analytical and matter-of-fact rather than emotional. It felt like reading more like a textbook than a memoir.
informative
inspiring
reflective
adventurous
challenging
informative
slow-paced
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
This is not a self-help book. It's mostly memoir, a look back at all the things the author has survived to get to the impressive age of eighty-seven, with a tiny bit of investigative journalism on the conditions of nursing homes and the funeral industry. If you liked Caitlin Doughty's Smoke Gets In Your Eyes, this is the prelude, a plea to decide how you want to grow old before you're unable to decide for yourself. That said, the author doesn't always follow her own advice.
Elizabeth Marshall Thomas is a fascinating woman. I didn't realize when I requested an ARC that she is a bestselling author and anthropologist. If you're expecting a conservative book from a doddering old woman, this is not it. Our G Liz has escaped a lion attack. She tried to light a cigarette on her 80th birthday cake but her children wouldn't let her. She lost her husband only a few years ago. She has faced death and come out the other side wiser and a good bit more insecure, with macular degeneration and all the social indignities of growing older. I hope her children and grandchildren value her, spend quality time with her, and follow her wishes once she can't make decisions for herself.
This book is extremely readable and interesting. My only note is that I wish it were longer, and maybe included more research on how to age gracefully like it says on the tin. However, I would absolutely recommend this to young and aging people alike. As a society, we need to learn to see the elderly as people, and to plan for the eventual reality of growing old (if we're lucky.)
I eagerly await the author's book on commas, because I use them way too much for dramatic effect and I think she will only validate this.
I received a temporary ARC in return for an honest review. #Netgalley #GrowingOld
Elizabeth Marshall Thomas is a fascinating woman. I didn't realize when I requested an ARC that she is a bestselling author and anthropologist. If you're expecting a conservative book from a doddering old woman, this is not it. Our G Liz has escaped a lion attack. She tried to light a cigarette on her 80th birthday cake but her children wouldn't let her. She lost her husband only a few years ago. She has faced death and come out the other side wiser and a good bit more insecure, with macular degeneration and all the social indignities of growing older. I hope her children and grandchildren value her, spend quality time with her, and follow her wishes once she can't make decisions for herself.
This book is extremely readable and interesting. My only note is that I wish it were longer, and maybe included more research on how to age gracefully like it says on the tin. However, I would absolutely recommend this to young and aging people alike. As a society, we need to learn to see the elderly as people, and to plan for the eventual reality of growing old (if we're lucky.)
I eagerly await the author's book on commas, because I use them way too much for dramatic effect and I think she will only validate this.
I received a temporary ARC in return for an honest review. #Netgalley #GrowingOld