‘How To Live’

By Jessica Schneider Jan 3, 2009, 12:43 GMT

Armed with recent medical evidence that supports the cliche that older people are, indeed, wiser, Alford sets off to interview people over 70 - some famous (Phyllis Diller, Harold Bloom, Edward Albee), some accomplished (the world\'s most-quoted author, a woman who walked across the country at age 89 in support of campaign finance reform), some unusual (a pastor who thinks napping is a form of prayer, a retired aerospace engineer ...more

"How to Live: A Search for Wisdom from Old People (While They Are Still on This Earth)" is the latest title by Henry Alford.

Publishers Weekly states: “Alford (Big Kiss) recognizes that the elderly have been through more in their lives than the rest of us, and figures it might be a good idea to talk to some of them and see if they have any meaningful advice to impart. This plan sets off a prolonged meditation: what is wisdom, anyway?”

Yet USA Today asks: “At 46, Henry Alford has written a book about old age, How to Live: A Search for Wisdom From Old People (While They Are Still on This Earth), which prompts a question:

Is he old enough for this kind of work?”

Published by Twelve, one review on Amazon states:

“Interviewing such personal heroes as playwright Edward Albee and spiritual guru Ram Dass, he plunders the vaults of others' experiences, comparing notes and weighing everything against his own worldview. Is wisdom a product of experience? Is it the property of thinkers like Epicurus and Confucius? Does wisdom boil down to simple proverbs? These are the questions that Alford tackles without a map, but with objective curiosity, humorous verve and scholarly diligence. His mother's unfolding crisis becomes a catalyst and the book's anchoring story line. After 36 years of marriage, she divorces the author's stepfather, whose addictive personality and depression force her to make serious late-life choices. Selling the house, she packs up her cow-themed bric-a-brac collection and moves from Massachusetts to a retirement community in North Carolina near one of her daughters. Her unique - and uniquely American - variation on the universal phenomenon of aging will appeal to almost every reader, as will her son's familiar internal struggles. Taking a lighthearted approach, Alford discovers that wisdom is a process rather than a fixed point. Bumpy but rich with surprises.”