
Title : Celebration
Author : Harry Crews
Rating : 2 Stars out of 5.
Summary : An unbelievably lame tale from my favorite author. Bummer.
I've savored and passed around every Crews novel in print, but I had to force myself to finish this one. If you've never read a Harry Crews novel, don't start with Celebration. Skip it and pick up Scar Lover, Feast of Snakes or Knockout Artist and see the strange genius of Crews at its finest. His brilliance is in the way he touches deeply into the lives of disturbed outcasts and makes you laugh out loud and fall in love with all of them.
Celebration has the cast of outrageous characters that I love about Crews's novels, but here they just seem ridiculous and silly with none of Crews's previous characters' charm and wit.
The jacket art, depicting the gorgeous 18 year old Too Much, is the best thing about this book. Too bad Crews can't convince us that such a creature exists, even in Forever and Forever, a Florida trailer park for eccentrics at the end of their miserable lives.
Too Much shares a trailer and a giant bath tub with Stump, the elderly owner of the park whose missing hand and resulting nub is the main reason she's with him. "Had it been possible, she would have taken him inside her all the way to the shoulder." If you think the names of these characters are hard to swallow, you have an idea of how much disbelief you will have to suspend to get this one down. It's as if Crews had his students write this one as a class project.

Title : The Baby Boomer Financial Wake-up Call: It's Not Too Late to Financially Secure!
Author : Kay R. Shirley
Rating : 1 Stars out of 5.
Summary : This book does not cover enough real-life scenarios.
This book if fine if you have had the time and opportunity to put money aside for retirement.
It does not even touch upon those of us who are married for the second time, are basically just starting out all over again with nothing in the bank and no retirement packages at work and who are paying astronomical amounts in child support and will be until we are a hair away from retirement. How are we supposed to amass any money when the "ex" gets it all?
WE are the people who need the help. WE are the people who will be living on a very "fixed" income while the ex-wife will be living in security using the child support money for her retirement.
I'm totally disgusted.

Title : Grown-up's Guide to Running Away from Home
Author : Rosanne Knorr
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Solid, Nuts-and-Bolts Advice for Adults
Filled with practical advice covering both the philosophical ("Don't you love your country?" objections) and the practical (a recommended cat carrier), Knorr breaks a complicated, life-changing idea into specific, do-able tasks. Anyone who has thought about living overseas for months or years must read this book.
Beginning with a personality assessment for the would-be expatriate, Knorr guides the reader through a step-by-step analysis of moving overseas. As the title implies, this is a book for adults who may be encumbered with houses, aging parents, life-long living patterns and other apparent obstacles to making a major life change.
Knorr's cautious approach and practical information are designed to produce either a successful sojourn overseas or the avoidance of what might turn out to be an impulsive mistake.

Title : The New Golden Door to Retirement Living in Costa Rica
Author : Christopher Howard
Rating : 5 Stars out of 5.
Summary : Great, Great Book!
My husband and I found this book to be a godsend. It helped make our move to Costa Rica a lot easier and answered a lot of questions we had. We saved time and money by reading it. Even after living in Costa we refer to it occasionally. It was highly recommended to us by the Costa Rican Residents Association.

Title : Have a Healthy and Happy Retirement Pbk'b'Format(Ntc USA Edition) Help Yourself Series
Author : Michael Apple
Rating : 4 Stars out of 5.
Summary : How to enjoy freedom better health a comfortable lifestyle
One of the greatest changes to have taken place over the last years is the attitude to retirement and ageing. No longer do the older generation creep along as Old Age Pensioners. Instead we see Seniors enjoying their freedom, better health, and with a little luck and planning, a comfortable lifestyle.
Dr Michael Apple, a GP who is also a writer, has brought all this together in his latest book. He urges anyone approaching retirement to think positively about what it will mean, and to seize with both hands the opportunities which are there. He advises us not to let this major change in life catch up on us without some planning, since he points out that in retirement we are viewed in a different light not only by others but by ourselves as well. He explains how some of the relationships we have will change, and how and why even our children may look at us differently.
So, read this book to find out about how to make the most of your opportunities - browse through it - and you will find out all you need to know about moving from a fixed daily routine to using your time more freely. He acknowledges that poor health or a disability may be a factor to contend with, and gives good advice about how to cope with some of these problems.
His sound recommendations are: keep healthy physically and emotionally, look at how ageing affects the body and the mind, make sure you are safe, care for your appearance, and maybe even reassess your sex life.