Book Review: How to Succeed at Aging Without Really Dying by Lyla Blake Ward

Bottom Line: Ward is not nearly as curmudgeonly as Andy Rooney. She actually knows how to use a computer and shop online, and she writes with clarity and wit.

I picked this book up on one of those super Amazon Kindle sale. I liked the title and am dealing with aging relatives. I have been working on creating a notebook for myself that includes all sorts of useful advice to myself for when I eventually grow old. I encourage myself to get a minimum amount of exercise and to write things down, among other such stellar wisdom.  I thought I might glean a thing or two from Lyla Ward's book.

This collection of essays has its share of old-person grumbling about how things used to be simpler, and she's right. I remember when you turned on the TV without a remote and had only a few channels to turn access via the tuner dial. (I know that qualifies me as old in some people's eyes.) Now, I have to have at least two remotes or a computer to watch my shows because I stream so much of my visual entertainment. But besides the complaining, Ward includes some lovely snapshots of her life through the years.

I really enjoyed two of her essays. One was about trying to fit in with the sports/country club set. Ward is not a sportswoman, but through the judicious use of proper "outfitting," she was able to create the illusion that she either had just come from playing a sport or was about to join in a match, game, or set at any moment. Her other essay I really liked was about flower arranging. She uses satire nicely to skewer strange, artistic "individual" centerpieces for dinner parties or other occasions.

This book is easy to read and mostly fun. Ward has an intriguing mind. I enjoy essayists who present a clear voice in their work. I plan to look up more of Ward's writing.