Today at The New Republic, Jessica Loudis reviews Long for This World.
“In his lively and immensely interesting book,” she writes, “Jonathan Weiner looks into this strange field and asks what leads someone to defy collective wisdom—worse, collective knowledge—and devote their life to fighting life’s end.”
Two short clips:
Weiner is less concerned with whether immortality is possible—he doubts that it is—than with whether it is desirable. This, too, is an ancient question. It has been pondered in philosophy for centuries, and it is enjoying a certain vogue in American popular culture—consider the recent spate of vampire movies and shows. But as Weiner suggests, it has become particularly relevant as global demographics adjust to contemporary medicine.
The science of aging is at the center of several urgent if quiet medical debates, and Weiner skillfully fleshes out its more radical history with equal attention to science and culture, taking aim at readers from both camps.
Read the complete review at TNR.com.
