Title Synopsis: Now 80 years old, retirement and advanced age have crushed the spirit of six committed college radicals of the 1960s, who together had participated in civil rights campaigns and anti-war protests. Having pursued separate careers and engaging in only periodic communication with each other over the decades, they suddenly receive an invitation to gather for an extended weekend at a country cabin.
Struggling with the vagaries of old age, they have divergent expectations from the get-together. Rebecca, who has lost both her wife and lifelong job as a union organizer, is seeking companionship. Malaika, the only African American member of their clique, feels lost after stepping down from her successful law firm and is looking for direction in her life. Mourning her youthful athletic prowess and attractiveness, Deanna is wary of how she will be viewed by the others.
A professor emeritus, Russell is dealing with a third failing marriage and two heart attacks. After burning his draft card, Max had left for Canada where he became an architect and single father. Now facing dementia, he is unsure of what to expect from the weekend. Keith, exhausted from decades of environmental activism and Parkinson’s disease, eagerly awaits spending time with his former companions.
During the three days together, the old comrades confront their inner demons, each other, and their future. They also bond through shared stories, politics, and long conversations. They realize that despite their decades of separation, they still speak the same language.
Author Bio: Laura Katz Olson, AGF Distinguished Professor of Political Science, has taught at Lehigh University since 1974. To date, she has published nine nonfiction books, focusing on healthcare, aging and private equity. Elder Care Journey: A View from the Front Lines, which relates her personal experiences as a caregiver for her mother, won a Gold Medal in the Ninth Annual Living Now Book Awards (2017) in the category of caregiving. Ethically Challenged: Private Equity Storms U.S. Health Care, published in 2022, won gold medals in The North American Book Awards (category: Business/Finance and Political Current Events); the Axiom Business Book Awards (category: business ethics); and the Independent Book Publishers Association (IBPA) Benjamin Franklin Awards (category: political and current events). The book also won a silver medal in the Nautilus book awards (category: journalism/investigative reporting); was a finalist in both the American Book Fest Best Book Awards (category: general nonfiction) and Montaigne Medal/Eric Hoffer Awards (category: most thought-provoking book); and was a winner in the National Indie Excellence Awards (category: political). At Lehigh, Olson’s The Politics of Medicaid received the Williamson Book Award in Social Research (2012); won the Joseph A. Dowling Award for Excellence in Research and Teaching (2022); and received the Libsch Senior Research Award (2024). She had been elected to serve on the American Political Science Council and is on the editorial board of the Journal of Critical Political Science. In 2009, she received the Charles A. McCoy Lifetime Achievement Award. She also published an award-winning novel, Wrinkled Rebels (Vine Leaves Press) in 2024.
Author: Laura Katz Olson
Narrator: Alix Olson
Publisher: Vine Leaves Press
Copyright: 2024 Laura Katz Olson
Audiobook Release Date: 9/22/2025
Original Book Release Date: July 23, 2024
Running Time: 09:41:13
Audiobook ISBN: 9781965655740