The onset of aging can be so gradual that we are often surprised to find that one day it is fully upon us. The changes to the senses, appearance, reflexes, physical endurance, and sexual appetites are undeniable and rarely welcome; yet, as Nuland shows, getting older has its surprising blessings. Age concentrates not only the mind, but the body's energies, leading many to new sources of creativity, perception, and spiritual intensity. Growing old, Nuland teaches us, is not a disease but an art - and for those who practice it well, it can bring extraordinary rewards.

"I'm taking the journey even while I describe it," writes Nuland, now in his mid-70s and a veteran of nearly four decades of medical practice. Drawing on his own life and work, as well as the lives of friends both famous and not, Nuland portrays the astonishing variability of the aging experience. Faith and inner strength, the deepening of personal relationships, the realization that career does not define identity, the acceptance that some goals will remain unaccomplished - these are among the secrets of those who age well.