Prime Time (with Bonus Content)

August 1, 2011
Now in her 70s, acclaimed actress and fitness personality Fonda (My Life So Far) wants to help people realize the potential of their later decades and redefine their elder years as a "third act" rather than a slow decline into infirmity and illness. In this accessible memoir and guide, she directs readers toward ways to keep their golden years happy through diet and exercise, mental resiliency, friendships, money, sexuality, relationships, and spiritual evolution. Fonda has clearly done her research, providing especially timely advice about suitable forms of exercise and dietary change (complete with diagrams and workout guides). However, advice about financial planning and retirement is scant, and wouldn't be useful to those who are already at retirement age. Readers will empathize with Fonda's laudable mission to change the cultural perception of aging, and enjoy her appealing, straightforward tone. Her older female readers will likely feel that she speaks directly to them. (Aug.)\t

August 1, 2011

Now in her early 70s, celebrity icon Fonda (My Life So Far, 2006, etc.) is embracing what she refers to as Stage Three of life.

The author assures readers that aging is an enlightening experience when approached with a positive perspective. She invites us to visualize life not as an arch, "taking us from childhood to a middle peak of maturity, followed by a decline into infirmity," but rather as a staircase that symbolizes "our potential for upward progression toward wisdom, spiritual growth, learning, toward...consciousness and soul." Interweaving heartfelt personal anecdotes about her struggles and successes in life, and those of others close to her, with cited research conducted by a variety of specialists, Fonda offers a comprehensive guide to living life to the fullest, particularly beyond middle age. She thoroughly addresses all the essential components that contribute to one's physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health, such as fitness, nutrition, meditation, romantic love and sex, friendship and financial planning. With a sincere determination to redefine society's perception of life beyond middle age, Fonda advocates for a group whose contributions to society are often underestimated and undervalued. Although geared toward those 60 years of age and over, the author's wealth of wisdom can benefit readers of any age who want to proactively prepare for their future.

An inspirational and highly informative guide to living the second half of life with enthusiasm and buoyancy.

(COPYRIGHT (2011) KIRKUS REVIEWS/NIELSEN BUSINESS MEDIA, INC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.)

April 1, 2011

Now that we're living so much longer, there aren't just second acts but third acts in American life. To prepare us, mega-selling author/institution Fonda offers tips on food, exercise, love, and fulfilling ourselves emotionally and spiritually as we pass 60 and head for the final curtain. Wondering how this might differ from other advice books (including Fonda's) and sort of missing radical Jane, but obviously this is for every help-yourself collection serving people of a certain age.

Copyright 2011 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2011
Now in her seventies, well within what she calls the third act of her life, Fonda observes how perspectives on aging have changed. People in their seventies were once considered old old, but healthier lifestyles have led to longer and more vibrant lives, creating an entire second adult lifetime. Fonda explores what a longer third act can mean for marriage, finances, parenting, and retirement. Seeing the baby boomers as the pioneers of a more active and productive old age, she argues for a new perspective on old ideas of aging. The notions that learning is for early years and leisure for later years should reflect the new reality that learning and leisure can be enjoyed across the spectrum of life. Her book is organized into Act I, on life's first three decades; Act II, on the middle three; and Act III, on the final three or more. She draws on research by psychologists and health experts, profiles active seniors, and discusses her own life and career as daughter of Henry Fonda, actress, activist, fitness guru, wife of Tom Hayden and Ted Turner, mother, and grandmother. She focuses on how she overcame anxieties about aging and confronted it head-on with a vision of what the final act should look like. Photographs from her long career enhance Fonda's message of vitality and longevity. HIGH-DEMAND BACKSTORY: Onetime fitness guru and iconic actress Jane Fonda follows up her best-selling memoir with a new book that dispenses advice about retaining vibrancy well into old age.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2011, American Library Association.)