Travels With Epicurus: Meditations From A Greek Island On The Pleasures Of Old Age by Daniel Klein

Paperback:  It is not the young man who should be considered fortunate but the old man who has lived well, because the young man in his prime wanders much by chance, vacillating in his beliefs, while the old man has docked in the harbour, having safeguarded his true happiness. - Epicurus

Our society worships at the fountain of youth.  Each year, we try to delay the arrival of old age, using everything at our disposal, from extreme exercise and botox to pilates and cosmetic dentistry.

But in the process, are we missing out on a distinct and extraordinarily valuable stage of life?

Asking whether it is better to be forever young or to grin toothlessly and live an authentic old age, bestselling author Daniel Klein journeys to the Greek island of Hydra.

There, he draws on the lives of octogenarian Greek locals, as well as philosophers ranging from Epicurus to Sartre, to discover the secrets of ageing happily.

An escapist travel memoir, a droll meditation, and an optimistic guide to living well, Travels With Epicurus:  Mediations From A Greek Island On The Pleasures Of Old Age (2014) is a delightful jaunt through the terrain of old age, led by a witty and uniquely perceptive modern-day sage.

About the author:  Daniel Klein is the co-author of the international bestseller Plato and a Platypus Walk into a Bar.  He is a Harvard graduate in philosophy and an acclaimed writer of both fiction and nonfiction.  When not enjoying the slow life on Greek islands, he lives in Massachusetts with his wife.

Genre:  Philosophy/Travel