Old Man Country, Thomas R. Cole
Old Man Country, Thomas R. Cole
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Old Man Country
My Search for Meaning Among the Elders

Author: Thomas R. Cole

Narrator: David Colacci

Unabridged: 7 hr 19 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Tantor Media

Published: 01/07/2020


Synopsis

We aspire to live in a country where old men are celebrated as vital elders but not demeaned if they become ill and dependent. We aspire to maintain health as well as maintain dignity and fulfillment in frailty. Old Man Country helps listeners see and imagine these possibilities for themselves.

The book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom, as he encounters twelve distinguished American men over eighty—including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the world's most famous heart surgeon. In these and other intimate conversations, the book explores and honors the particular way that each man faces four challenges of living a good old age: Am I still a man? Do I still matter? What is the meaning of my life? Am I loved? Listeners will come to see how each man—even the most famous—faces universal challenges.

Personal stories about work, love, sexuality, and hope mingle with stories about illness, loss, and death. This book will strengthen each of us as we and our loved ones anticipate and navigate our way through the passages of old age.

About Thomas R. Cole

Thomas R. Cole is the McGovern Chair and Director of the McGovern Center for Humanities and Ethics at University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston. His work has been featured in the New York Times, NPR, and PBS. Cole has served as an adviser to the President's Council on Bioethics and the United Nations NGO Committee on Ageing. His book The Journey of Life: A Cultural History of Aging in America was nominated for a Pulitzer Prize. He is senior editor of The Oxford Book of Aging, which the New Yorker cited as one of the most memorable books of the year. Cole's book No Color Is My Kind: the Life of Eldrewey Stearns and the Desegregation of Houston was adapted into the film, The Strange Demise of Jim Crow, which was broadcast nationally on over sixty PBS stations. In 2007, he coproduced Stroke: Conversations and Explanations, a prize-winning film about the invisible world of stroke survivors.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Christina on January 16, 2020

As Cole the author faces his own "Fourth Age" in life, he takes on the project of interviewing men further along the path. In the process, he faces the own breakdowns and discoveries in his own life. The findings range from interesting to eye-rolling. In short, spiritually it's a free-for-all, physi......more

Goodreads review by Edward on November 12, 2023

In this work Cole, a Humanities and Ethics specialist, interviewed twelve “old” men, well-educated, most in their 80’s, to find out what they thought gave meaning to their lives. Cole, who was 74 when the book was published, interestingly often interjects himself and his life into these interviews,......more

Goodreads review by Gary on January 20, 2023

An odd book. Purports to be interviews with very old men to learn what experience and wisdom they have acquired over their long lives. It includes twelve interviews with the author's friends, colleagues, or others with whom he has a personal connection. All are highly educated movers and shakers, mo......more