(review)
Too Soon Old, Too Late Smart is a short but great book filled with wisdom.
The author, Dr. Gordon Livingston, is a psychiatrist, a Vietnam veteran and a father who survived the death of two of his kids.
He alludes to their death and the lessons he learned from them; a six-year-old son died of complications related to leukaemia, and a son in his early 20s with bipolar disorder killed himself. Yet, the book is not about his tragedies.
The book presents thirty chapters in simple, clear, several-page essays. Each is a life lesson, a piece of truth and wisdom and the conversational style makes their reading and comprehension easier to follow.
It is an easy-read book that helps the reader see how we all can learn from our life events and understand how different experiences could lead us to similar conclusions about life.
Advertising for mood-altering drugs, cosmetic surgery, and consumer self-improvement all play a role in the illusion that happiness is for sale.
The elderly are stigmatised as mentally and physically disabled. Apart from continuing to be consumers, it is rarely argued that the elderly contribute anything useful to society.
Change is the essence of life. It is the goal of all psychotherapeutic conversations. But for the process to take place, it must go beyond the stage of simple complaint. …we are responsible for most of the things that happen to us.
This book is not just a “bunch” of truths and wisdom about human behaviour coming from a psychiatrist who’s been listening to people’s problems for decades. It is a book that has something for everyone, coming from a human being’s deep understanding of the life lessons, who has been listening and learning from them.
Happiness is not simply the absence of despair. It is an affirmative state, in which our lives have both meaning and pleasure.
Love, Manuela
Copyright © 2016-2025 manuela@inalove.world
In a Love World 
The dismissal of the contribution of the elderly to society is a very good point, and the way in which their mental health is viewed. I am sure his work will be a success.
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He has a lot of good points… Thank you for your visit and comment!
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💙💜
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❤️ 🔆 🌈
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