LOSING IT: In Which an Aging Professor LAMENTS His Shrinking BRAIN, Which He Flatters Himself Formerly Did Him Noble Service... A Plaint, Tragi-Comical, Historical, Vengeful, Sometimes Satirical and Thankful in Six Parts, if His Memory Does Yet Serve

"If old age is especially hard for that small group of the once attractive... it does great favors for the much larger group of humanity that is plain or ugly." Law professor Miller (The Anatomy of Disgust) takes target at the inevitable aging process, and finds much more humor than might be expected. After discussing the well-known impacts of aging on memory, he questions whether the acquisition of wisdom is fact or fiction before turning to what is obviously a finely-honed skill, complaining: "I have%E2%80%94perhaps you have too%E2%80%94cultivated a wince when I get in and out of chairs, just so people can appreciate how stoical I am." He chats about the inevitable death, concluding with his thoughts about "Going Out in Style." His leisurely pace and straight talk brings topics that are not always openly discussed into the realm of everyday conversation. Miller draws on mythology, literature, and film%E2%80%94from Icelandic sagas and the Bible to The Princess Bride%E2%80%94to illustrate and demonstrate the human relationship with aging and death over the centuries. Readers may turn to the book for contemplation or a much-needed laugh as they themselves continue the unavoidable journey. (Oct.)