To retire or not to retire. Is that any longer the question? For the current breed of would-be retirees—aka baby boomers—who are planning their personal and professional lives for the years after they reach 50, 60 and even 70, maybe it is; maybe it’s not. In Why Retire? Career Strategies for Third Age Nurses, authors Fay L. Bower and William A. Sadler help would-be retirees decide.

The authors look at the history of retirement in America—how it has been perceived, handled and lived—and how all that may be changing in the face of a new reality. Boomers just may want to continue to work and contribute through their “Third Age,” a period stretching from age 50 to 75 that, in some communities, signifies retirement. Here in the United States, however, it’s beginning to mean the regeneration, renewal and remaking of a life, a job, a person.

Easy to read and filled with exercises, examples and advice, the book provides stories of those who have learned that, if done right, getting older does not have to be what it once was. New chapters can be started, new interests pursued, old dreams fulfilled. These years can, in fact, become ones of aging positively rather than becoming “positively aged,” and can be filled with great challenges and exciting accomplishments. In this stage of life, 60 can become the new 40.

By any measure, it’s certain that today’s Third Agers will live longer and, just as certain, that they will need to live well if they are to be part of the solution rather than the problem of aging in America. This book shows them how. For those approaching what was once “retirement age,” it provides interesting and instructive accounts of those who took that second look at life, redefined themselves and, in the process, found happiness and success. It tells readers that as happy Third Agers, they may not only restructure their own retirement, but remodel it for the workforce of the future—a perfect role in which nurses can take the lead!

In the end, these “young old” will find that, if they are to progress from the Second Age of growth and achievement to the Third Age of renewed opportunity, before looking to the Fourth Age of completion, they will have to stay current, communicative, creative and committed. This book will provide much of the knowledge they need to do just that! RNL

Eileen P. Williamson, RN, MSN, is vice president, nursing communications and initiatives, New York/New Jersey division, Gannett Healthcare Group.