so when are you going to retire?: a book in process about age, work and identity 03.18.2008, 1:18 PM osted by ben vershbow I want to give a shout out to a wonderful new project by a dear friend of ours. So When Are You Going to Retire? is -?_ or will be, or is in the process of becoming -?_ a book exploring questions of age, work and identity through the stories of people over 80 who continue, against the odds, to work for a living. As of very recently, the author, Ashton Applewhite, has begun documenting her research on a very attractive new weblog , and is inviting readers, writers and experts in the field to join her in conversations and story sharing that hopefully will shape the book's development. In an email, Ashton explained to me why she's doing this: I'm a generalist writing about a broad topic: people in their 80s and 90s who are still in the workforce, and what we can learn from them. Following on the Institute's work with Siva and Mitchell Stephens, I'm excited about using the blog as a mechanism for thinking out loud as I go through my material, formulate the themes of the book, and write the proposal. I think that ongoing feedback from experts (gerontologists, social scientists, demographers, etc.) and discerning readers will sharpen and inform my thinking -?_ in other words, that the network will help me build a better book. I also think i'll end up