Boomeresque:Definition
1. Adj.: Describing a person born between 1 Jan. 1946 and 31 Dec. 1964
2. Adj.: Description of a person, place or thing possessing Baby Boomer je ne sais quoi
3. See also, Boomer, Esq.: A Baby Boomer who is also a licensed attorney (See, e.g., About).

How Old Am I In Dog Years? – A Boomeresque Book Review

by Suzanne Fluhr on May 11, 2017 · 2 comments

  • How Old Am I In Dog Years by Susan Goldfein book reviewThe tag line for the book How Old Am I In Dog Years by Susan Goldfein is: “and other thoughts about life from the far side of the hill”. Given our shared demographic as women of a certain age (or thereabouts), when I was offered a review copy of this book of essays it seemed likely it would be a good literary fit for me. I wasn’t disappointed.

In the book’s Prologue which is captioned “What Shall I Do All Day? (or, How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Start Blogging)”, the author recounts the tentative start of her retirement from a busy professional career as a speech pathologist, consultant and adjunct professor. I can relate. I consider myself a recovering (almost recovered!) lawyer, blogging about “Baby Boomer Travels for the Body and Mind“. Therefore, before I read even one of the essays, it seemed clear that Susan (may I call you Susan?) and I have been on similar life trajectories, ultimately joining a community of writers, and finding our reinvention sweet spot. Although I like to think I’m capable of “nothing but the facts” travel writing, I can certainly identify with  Susan’s description of where she landed:

I was a blogger! I would take my place beside other authors who had turned kvetching into a literary genre.

With apologies to Forrest Gump, I consider How Old Am I In Dog Years to be the literary equivalent of a box of chocolates, something to be left bedside where a bite sized, amusing reading treat can be unwrapped before sleep—and, in my case (sigh), again at 1:00 a.m, 3:00 a.m, and 3:47 a.m. As a 216 page paperback or as a mobile device download, the book can easily accompany you to a doctor’s waiting room or to the cramped confines of an airplane economy seat, where it’s easier to digest engaging reading morsels rather than complex tomes such as War and Peace. 

The book is a compendium of personal essays from Susan’s blog, An Unfiltered Wit, organized by the shared themes: Happily Ever After, Deep Thoughts, Life in the Slow Lane, The X Chromosome, and my favorite, Vintage Whine, which of course, starts with an essay about dealing with tech support.

I found most of the essays highly relatable, some bringing forth a sigh of rueful recognition, especially the one entitled, “The Road Not Taken”. Apparently, in addition to blogging, the author and I share satisfying second marriages that endure despite our poor map reading skills. We also share our retirements  reinventions (and aches and pains) with aging dogs.

One of Susan’s essays describes our generation’s reading quandary of “Nook, Book, or Kindle?”. Fortunately, if I have enticed you into purchasing your own copy of How Old Am I In Dog Years?, you can purchase it in paperback and/or digital versions. If you do so using the affiliate link below, Boomeresque earns a small tiny commission without adding to your cost. Win win. 

(If you don’t see the link, please click on the title of this post to view it in your internet browser.)

{ 2 comments… read them below or add one }

Nan May 12, 2017 at 2:22 pm

Sounds like this book was maybe – just maybe – akin to something YOU can write? I’d buy yours!! Does sound like a great book with good humor!

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Roz Warren May 14, 2017 at 9:22 am

Enjoyed your countdown of Insomniac Middle-of-the-Night reading opportunities. Clearly, if i want to get more reading done, I’d better sleep less soundly.

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