Never Too Late – by Roy Rowan

Never Too Late 
(A 90-Year-Olds Pursuit of a Whirlwind Life)
By:  Roy Rowan
Pages:  240
Published:  2011

When asked by the Greenwich Citizen what his book was about, he stated,

“It is simply one 90-year old man’s view of the pleasures and potentials of old age based on a long life crammed full of adventures as a correspondent for Time, Life, and Fortune magaines.” 

What a life indeed!!  Roy Rowan details the lessons he has learned from his globetrotting travels, his three-time battle with cancer and his 50-year marriage to his wife Helen.  He has been in one war, covered three more and even ran a marathon.  Never Too Old is chock-full of inspirational stories and a few of his favorite quotes, including this one by Eubie Blake:

“If I knew I was going to live so long, I would have taken better care of myself.”

If you want to have a fulfilling life at any age, you must have these three things:  Enthusiasm, Exertion and Energy. 

Enjoy!!

Unbearable Lightness – Portia de Rossi

 Unbearable Lightness:  A Story of Loss & Gain
 By:  Portia de Rossi
 Published:  2010
 Pages:  320
 Genre:  Biography

 

Model and Ally McBeal actress, Portia de Rossi, gives us a candid description of her struggles with anorexia in her biography Unbearable Lightness.  Her brutal honesty about the destructive thought processes that accompany this disease was courageous and hopefully cathartic for her as well.  But with her only sustainable relationship being with food, it was very one-dimensional.  Maybe that was the point, to show how all-consuming it was.  But the constant ritual of yogurt and exercise became monotonous and boring. 

Her popularity and platform could have been better used to help inspire young women, especially those who struggle with the same disease.  Instead, it reads more like a How-To book for girls who desparately want to be thinner. 

For the Ellen fans out there who had hoped that this book would shed some light on their relationship, the only mention of her relationship with Ellen is in the epilogue where she refers to Ellen as saving her.  It makes you wonder if she has really won the battle against this disease.  Someone else can’t save you from your demons.  Only you can save yourself.