Getting Over Getting Older: An Intimate Journey [Hardcover]

Letty Cottin Pogrebin (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 1, 1996

As 77 million baby boomers begin turning fifty, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, a respected social critic and award-winning writer, tells the truth about that uncharted period when time speeds up and the body slows down - when you are no longer young but far from old, and you refuse to believe that you are over the hill. Pogrebin's journey out of her forties and into her fifties becomes a user-friendly map of this challenging terrain as she demystifies the fears most people can't face and celebrates the possibilities most people can't see. Every woman who is facing fifty or has already moved past it will be grateful for this warm, witty exploration of the indignities and epiphanies of midlife, large and small. Suddenly waking up in the middle of the night, for instance, with a non-negotiable need to go to the bathroom. Immediately. Having to let the waistband out on every skirt you own. Discovering one day that you can no longer read the phone book. Finally figuring out what you want to be when you grow up. Realizing that not everyone you love will be here forever and neither will you. Cherishing the present as never before.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Not everyone--not even every feminist--holds to the belief that age brings wisdom, power, and its own beauty. Faced with turning 50, Letty Cottin Pogrebin, founder of Ms. and author of several books including Growing Up Free, says her reactions ranged "from astonishment to anger, from confusion to curiosity, from denial to disgust." Using herself as a compass and adding many other well- known voices, Pogrebin's irreverent book takes on friendship, sex, love, dieting, mothering adults, the physical and emotional depredations of aging, and mortality. Rather than stubbornly toeing the line on spurning plastic surgery, for example, she thoughtfully explores "the tension between artificiality and authenticity." In the end, she concludes, one can devote one's remaining years to lamenting and running after lost youth or put that time to far better uses. Despite a glib, overly playful tone that trivializes certain issues, Pogrebin's desire to share downplayed truths is a boon. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

Pogrebin (Deborah, Golda and Me), a founding editor of Ms magazine, is the latest baby boomer to weigh in with her thoughts on what turning 50 means to a woman. In anecdotes that range from humorous and insightful to occasionally tedious and self-indulgent, drawn from her own experiences and from the lives of friends, the 55-year-old Pogrebin ruminates on the pros and cons of aging. According to the author, the loss of a youthful appearance and a decrease in energy are offset by the freedom that comes when child-rearing ends. Age, she says, can also bring a heightened sense of living in the now. Of particular interest is an account of Pogrebin's emotional turmoil when she had to have a needle biopsy after a suspicious mammogram reading. Although much of her advice for coping with midlife, such as the benefits of discovering solitude, is useful, certain suggestions like living well and traveling are available only to the financially secure. Major ad/promo.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 336 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown and Company; 1st edition (May 1, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316712639
• ISBN-13: 978-0316712637
• Product Dimensions: 6.5 x 1.1 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,376,915 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Superficial, January 25, 2000

By 

C. Lacher "armchaircritic" (Washington State) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Getting over Getting Older (Mass Market Paperback)

Maybe I didn't enjoy this so much because I am only 45 and, therefore, a good 15 years younger than the author. That makes us of different generations making her personal anecdotes difficult to relate to. In addition, I don't have a great career, I'm not married, I don't live in a large metropolitan & cosmopolitan area, I don't have a group of fabulous girlfriends to drink wine and compare stories with, and I don't have kids (and likely never will) so again, I found a lot to not bond about with the author.

The opening chapter, however, was wonderful and had me howling in my chair. I hoped that fun would be maintained throughout the book. Instead, I felt the book spent too much time talking about superficial aspects of aging like eating right, exercising, and keeping your mind alert by trying new things (well, duh!). She also completely overlooks the more spiritual aspects of mortality in favor of political discussions about women in society (important but not what I'm needing right now). There was a rather graphic description of a breast bioposy which was riveting (the author holds nothing back there and thank you for that) Maybe in another five years I'll connect better instead of finding this to read very much like an irritating upbeat "how-to-be a glowing senior citizen article" out of Good Housekeeping Magazine. For now, I'd recommend Awakening at Midlife by Kathleen Brehony.

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny, poignant, reassuring--all at the same time!, August 4, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Getting over Getting Older (Mass Market Paperback)

A must-read for those 49 1/2 and--sorry--older.
My sister (55) recommended it to me (52) after I noticed that some men I had dated were starting to die in their 50's. I landed on Pogrebin's

reassuring comment that death isn't a factor of
aging but a factor of life with relief and
recognition. She approaches the good, the bad,
and the ugly (and what her grownup daughters label
even as disgusting) with humor and the sense
of sisterhood and community that are her hallmark.

7 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I laughed till I cried, May 18, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Getting Over Getting Older: An Intimate Journey (Hardcover)

This book was like talking with a close friend. I thank Letty for being honest, sensitive and very funny. If you are 50 it's a must read...I bought 6 copies to give to friends!