Travels with Epicurus: Meditations from a Greek Island on the Pleasures of Old Age

Although this book is squarely aimed at those 10+ years older than I am once you are past the preamble what is contained is a very pleasant read. I’d say it helps that I’ve visited Hydra, the Greek island that author Daniel Klein travels to to ascertain the secret of it’s well aged population, the book conjures a heady notion of the languid Saronic islands and through it’s intertwining with related texts from the great Greek thinkers it provides a pleasant read.

One Amazon reviewer had this to say: “This is my book of the year. I wish I had read it earlier in my life, though I am young enough at 56 to benefit considerably. Easy to read, yet addressing the most serious of concerns meaning of life and old age it helps frame thoughts about how we think about our lives and the terrors e try to hide from, death and old age, providing insight and a framework as well as thoughts from the author augmented by other key philosophers to ground the exploration of the individual into these topics we all face.
He is on a Greek island while writing and some of that Mediterranean sunshine also sinks through, very welcome in January.
Lovely book.“

“A truly benign and valuable short book, that is rare in conveying the spirit as well as the thought of the ancient Greek philosophers, by celebrating the wisdom that emerges in old age.” – Mark Vernon, author of 42: Deep Thought on Life, the Universe and Everything

“Charming and accessible, this philosophical survey simply and accessibly makes academic philosophy relevant to ordinary human emotion.” – Kirkus Reviews

Campervanman Star Rating:  4/5