false 5960563 5 <p>An esteemed memoirist examines aging with the grace of <em>Elegy for Iris</em> and the wry irreverence of <em>I Feel Bad About My Neck</em>.<p>Diana Athill is one of the great editors in British publishing. For more than five decades she edited the likes of V. S. Naipaul and Jean Rhys, for whom she was a confidante and caretaker. As a writer, Diana Athill has made her reputation for the frankness and precisely expressed wisdom of her memoirs. Now in her ninety-first year, "entirely untamed about both old and new conventions" (<em>Literary Review</em>) and freed from any of the inhibitions that even she may have once had, Athill reflects candidly, and sometimes with great humor, on the condition of being old—the losses and occasionally the gains that age brings, the wisdom and fortitude required to face death. Distinguished by "remarkable intelligence...[and the] easy elegance of her prose" (<em>Daily Telegraph</em>), this short, well-crafted book, hailed as "a virtuoso exercise" (<em>Sunday Telegraph</em>) presents an inspiring work for those hoping to flourish in their later years.</p></p> 6133314 2008 Somewhere Towards the End: A Memoir total:141|5:20|4:51|3:50|2:16|1:4| 141 490 440 65 4 1 false false Thu Feb 05 10:02:43 -0800 2009 Thu Feb 05 10:02:43 -0800 2009 Somewhere Towards the End isn't the first book to describe in detail the process of "falling away," the author's apt euphemism for the decline one experiences in old age. Critics compare Athill's memoir to John Bayley's Elegy for Iris and Nora Ephron's I Feel Bad About My Neck, or the fict...

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At age 89, Diana Athill has written a moving and thoughtful memoir on w...more...]]> 3 1 false false Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Nov 30 09:42:55 -0800 2008 Sun Nov 30 09:52:39 -0800 2008 more...]]> 2 1 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 24 12:29:48 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 24 12:39:24 -0800 2009 Once
This book got many raving reviews. I wish I could say it knocked me out, but it really didn't. ...more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue May 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu May 28 08:55:58 -0700 2009 Thu May 28 09:02:38 -0700 2009 more...]]> 1 0 false false Wed Jun 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 03 19:15:06 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 10 06:43:33 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Feb 26 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Wed Feb 25 13:27:26 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 02 09:05:01 -0800 2009 Once
I found the book's so-called frankness to be somewhat boring. It seemed to always come bac...more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 09 15:13:40 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 09 15:20:29 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 3 false false Tue Apr 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 18 06:50:06 -0700 2009 Sat Apr 18 06:57:57 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Fri Apr 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Apr 01 14:28:00 -0700 2009 Sun Apr 12 13:18:32 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 01 21:33:05 -0800 2009 Sun Mar 01 21:42:20 -0800 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Wed Jun 10 20:06:51 -0700 2009 Wed Jun 10 20:10:57 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Sun May 17 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Feb 17 07:08:27 -0800 2009 Sun May 17 09:05:04 -0700 2009
While the book was at times a tad unfocused, I didn't mi...more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Sep 11 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Feb 09 10:16:00 -0800 2009 Mon Sep 14 15:42:46 -0700 2009 Once more...]]> 3 0 false false Tue Mar 24 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 18 12:23:17 -0700 2009 Thu Jun 18 12:24:03 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Feb 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 23 15:45:13 -0800 2009 Mon Feb 23 15:49:13 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sun Mar 29 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 29 11:14:39 -0700 2009 Sun Mar 29 11:20:20 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Jun 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sat Jun 06 22:13:51 -0700 2009 Mon Jun 08 21:28:56 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Sat May 30 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon May 25 09:27:01 -0700 2009 Fri Jun 05 19:39:12 -0700 2009 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=5960563