Synopsis
A guide to celebrating midlife from the author of the national bestseller "Love Between Men".
Reviews
Aimed at the first generation of openly gay men to hit middle ageAa group in which AIDS has thinned the ranks and robbed many of a positive vision of the futureAthis genial handbook focuses on successful aging in a subculture that, Isensee says, idolizes youthfulness. A clinical social worker and psychotherapist, Isensee (Reclaiming Your Life) points out the positive aspects of agingAsuch as increased perspective, self-acceptance and tolerance for ambiguityAas well as the process by which many gay men resist and subsequently embrace the new possibilities associated with middle age. Other chapters address the physical and sexual changes of midlife and how to handle them, dating and relationship issues, grappling with one's own mortality as well as the loss of peers and parents and strategies for personal growth. In each, Isensee offers examples of specific challenges and how different men have successfully met them, illustrating each point with excerpts from 10 in-depth interviews. Additionally based on the author's work with support groups and individual patients, this guide tends to be breezy and simplistic and rests primarily on anecdotal material. As Isensee admits, it does not represent a definitive study. Until much more research is done on gay men's lives, however, his encouraging tone may entice those seeking enlightenment about aging.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Isensee, a clinical social worker and psychotherapist who has focused specifically on the psychological development of gay men in such books as Love Between Men: Enhancing Intimacy and Keeping Your Relationship Alive (Alyson, 1996), here hopes to "help gay men counter oppressive stereotypes about growing older, affirm a positive midlife identity, and grapple more successfully with these changes." Buttressing his account with excerpts from in-depth interviews with ten gay men of various backgrounds aged 37 to 50, he discusses changes in identity, physicality and sexuality, mortality, spirituality, and relationships. As a description of some men's experience, the observations and anecdotes, if not profound, make for engaging reading, supplementing such works as Gay Men and Aging (Garland, 1997), Gay Midlife and Maturity (Haworth, 1990), and Raymond Berger's Gay and Gray (Harrington Park, 1996). Recommended for specialized collections and larger public libraries.?James E. Van Buskirk, San Francisco P.L.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.
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