I was browsing through the new non-fiction section of my local public library yesterday, and I stumbled upon this short book. Since I am about 10 days away from my 49th birthday, the title sort of spoke to me (for obvious reasons). I also loved the very simple cover image; I definitely judged this book by its cover! I took it home and just sat down and read it cover to cover. I wasn’t expecting to find anything that I didn’t already know, and in the end, I think the book just reminded me of my own various thoughts about the malaise of the middle years. But there was something deeply satisfying in having a philosophical take on all of it. I especially liked the passages about telic versus atelic goals, and the problem that most academics face when they wake up and realize that they have become finely-tuned goal-achieving machines. Setiya’s diagnosis of the problem was spot on for me, and his suggestions for how to refocus meaning and purpose away from the telic to the atelic made intuitive sense. A powerful little book written with honestly and compassion.