Lessons from our elders

I read this book as part of a book club located in Tampa. Having only lived in this part of the country for 11 years, the history of the area and the people was very educational to me. The book is about life within the confines of Canterbury Tower, a retirement community in Tampa, Fl. Clendinen writes the story of his mother's life, in its' last stages, through the his experiences as being part of the Canterbury community during her time there. The story was full of contradictions about growing old, not the fault of the author. Reading about the different characters lives is funny, yet sad; uplifting, yet depressing; gives hope, yet hopelessness. There are so many emotions that run through you, especially if you are approaching that "stage" yourself or with a parent, that it is hard to describe the book in one or two adjectives. It will force the reader to take a hard look at growing old, how you want your last years to be lived, what arrangements you have made, or need to make, so your family is prepared, etc. One negative is that Mr. Clendinen certainly needed a better editor. The book could easily have been done in under 300 pages if it were not for the constant repetition of character descriptions in each chapter. In all, I would recommend this book to anyone wanting to understand what life is like in the golden years and beyond - yes, they still "party" (a lot in this place), they still have sex, or at least certainly miss it if they don't, still take pride in their appearances, and still believe in falling in love. Mr. Clendinen did a service to all of us by treating his subjects with respect, admiration, and with important history and stories that are a lesson for each of us.