Rules for Aging: A Wry and Witty Guide to Life

by Roger Rosenblatt

Book Overview

One of USA Today's Best Self-Help Books of the Year, the national bestseller Rules for Aging from New York Times bestselling author and beloved prize-winning essayist Roger Rosenblatt, is a witty and humorous guide about the trials and tribulations of getting older.

Rosenblatt has commented on most of the trends and events of our time. His columns in Time magazine and his commentaries on PBS's News Hour with Jim Lehrer have...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0156013606
• ISBN13: 9780156013604
• Release Date: November 2001
• Publisher: Ecco Press
• Length: 176 Pages
• Weight: 0.35 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 4.5" x 8.4"

Customer Reviews

A Man For All Seasons (Ages)

A friend kept trying to quote from 'Rules for Aging' and I would shush him because I hate people shoveling out quotes as a response to a problem. Smart man, he bought the book and gave it to me. I have been laughing ever since. Roger is as witty (oops, sorry Roger-see Rule #14) and wise as they come. Mostly this book gets me in a good mood no matter how cranky I am. I use it like my I Ching. I close my eyes and select a page to learn my fate for the day and with out fail, laughter is the prescription. I recommend it highly I am giving this book to both my 30 year old daughter and my 81 year old mother for Mother's Day. A proponent of Rule #4

If you are over 50, you will LOVE this book!

"Rules for Aging" is a short book, with rules you will never find written anywhere else but here, but it will make you smile and fill your day with humour and wit. And, how true it is! As I first glanced at the book, I thought, "OK, we are all aging, maybe there is something useful here." As I started to read with riskless joy and wonder, a phenominal concept finally hit me like a ton of bricks, "I'm really not losing my mind after all, I'm simply growing old" - rather like the lesser of two evils! While I loved all the rules, my favourites were #2, "Nobody is thinking about you... and #26, "Never go to a cocktail party....The sad part is that if you are under fifty you may not have lived long enough to completely understand the rules in this book, and if you are over fifty, well.... you may have to remember where you left your glasses before you can read it! Find your glasses, you will not regret the time it took, the book is terrific.

Wisdom And Laughter

Me, me, me. With self-help books infusing society's shelves and more added daily, it gets difficult to cut the wheat from the chaff. What works for some, doesn't work for others and non-needed confusion may set in, defeating the entire purpose! Seemingly half the population is in therapy (be it with a certified shrink or Oprah), and there is nothing wrong with searching for personal improvement. However, a cold dose of reality can be truly refreshing. Rosenblatt, TIME editor-at-large, supplies humorous cut-to-the-bone advice in, "Rules for Aging: Resist Normal Impulses, Live Longer, Attain Perfection." He's quick on the uptake and profoundly in your face--which works, if you allow yourself to take confessional responsibility. When I read a passage, "If something is boring you, it is probably you." , I gulppingly realized, hey, the guy is right.Though bitingly cynical at times, his advice on everything from party etiquette to office politics ("Never work for anyone more insecure than yourself") is also delightfully smart and funny. A hilarious read of wisdom, even for those not in need of self-help.

Fun Book, with Plenty of Wisdom

This is a really fun book, with lots of wisdom, much of it humorous. Despite the title, it really is a book for all ages as I am only 12, and can still apply many of Rosenblatt's rules. Rosenblatt takes his rules seriously, but doesn't take himself too seriously. Ideal for a X-Mas Stocking Stuffer -- I've already bought copies for both of my parents. Really easy read!

If anyone wants my rule.....

It would be: Read this book!My favorite was #2--"Nobody is thinking about you. They are thinking about themselves--just like you." That rule alone saves years of stress.Or, perhaps, #15--"Pursue virtue, but don't sweat it." As he explains: "The pursuit alone is sufficient to establish your qualities, and if you fail once in a while, your guilt will remind you of the path you didn't take." Comfort for all good intentioned fallible people--which most of us are.Or #31--Do not attempt to improve people, especially when you know it will help." He points back to Rule #2 and adds: "Nobody is thinking of you--unless you tell them about their faults. Then you may be sure that they are thinking about you. They are thinking of killing you." If I have any quibble, it would be with the title. A person of any age can profit from it. Perhaps a better title would have been; "Rules That Give You a Fighting Chance to Reach Old Age Without Succumbing to Stress or Having Someone Kill You."Perhaps he had the better idea after all.