Old and on Their Own

Dr. Coles introduces us to eleven men and women over the age of 75 living on their own. These older Americans share their thoughts, memories, aspirations, and worries, and tell us what it means to be old. Their stories are full of humor and hope, told with courage and dignity. The photographic essay by Alex Harris and Thomas Roma provides an important visual dimension to this book. Harris photographed in Durham, North Carolina, and Roma in his native Brooklyn. Whether rural or urban, black or white, rich or poor, these elderly people emerge as strong and inspiring individuals who deserve our respect and admiration, and who show us how to live our later years to the fullest.

Long recognized for his work with young people, the prominent child psychiatrist and Pulitzer Prize-winning author Robert Coles explores the lives of the elderly in Old and on Their Own.

Publishers Weekly

Harvard psychiatrist Coles, author of the acclaimed Children of Crisis series, here inquires of 11 men and women, all of them over 75 and living on their own, "How are you getting on?" Although several of the people are upbeat and only a few are grumpy, the atmosphere of the book is one of depression, and that mood has robbed Coles of the kind of optimism that marked his studies of children. "It's living with trouble, lots of trouble, that's what old age is all about,'' one woman tells him. One man, who suffers from high blood pressure, heart disease and diabetes, observes: "You never do know if you'll see another day, so you never do relax and just live, the way other folks do," a sentiment shared by another man: "The doctors say I'm depressed, but I tell them no, I'm realistic." The women, by and large, are less melancholic, more positive and cheerful, as witness one 83-year-old who briefly became an alcoholic following the death of her husband and now deals with her "metaphysical anxiety" with ballroom dancing. As they recount the routine discomforts of an aging body"trouble passing water, bones creaking"they are very aware that "it's all winding down." Clearly, aging is difficult to accept, and not much easier to read about, though some may find comfort in knowing that they are not alone. Photos. (Apr.)

Robert Coles is a child psychiatrist and writer who has spent his life doing documentary work. He lives in Concord, Massachusetts.

Alex Harris is a photographer, a professor at Duke University, and an editor of DoubleTake Magazine. He lives in Durham, North Carolina.

Thomas Roma's work has been widely exhibited and is in permanent collections of major museums in the United States and abroad. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.