Every birthday someone invariably declares, "Old age isn't so bad when you consider the alternative." Perhaps few think past Maurice Chevalier's reckoning to envision the vistas available to us as we age. Delightfully, Dorothy Adelson ushers us through the brave new world of the over-eighties. "At eighty and older, any fool knows he will not go on forever," Dorothy begins. With the voice of a friend who knows you well, she unfurls a season in which every day is extraordinarily interesting.
Generously sprinkled with literary insight ("I so rarely have a chance to air my education") and with reminiscences of her decade living in France, Dorothy ensures Live Longer and Like It is replete with wisdom. With chin-up honesty, Dorothy takes on topics from friendship ("People are life"); nourishment (..".at any age, one must eat"); and nursing homes ("I have a deep-seated revulsion"); to work ("We no longer feel guilty if we loaf all day"); passing time ("Time is not our master but our servant"); and the Parisian state of mind (..".squeezing joy out of every hour").
Clearly, the over-eighties era is reserved for those fully involved in life; indifferent to growing older. Anyone who's approaching or enduring this dotage-or knows someone who can claim this nom de guerre -will appreciate the grace and wit with which Dorothy shares her experiences, medical as well as social.
"You may be an old lady if you wish," she writes, "but don't ask me to join you."
"A warm, endearing memoir of one woman's blissful and bittersweet retirement in Manhattan." "Francofiles in particular - will probably enjoy the author's engaging writing style, vibrant optimism and continental attitude."
-Kirkus Reviews