There have been considerable discussions amongst academics and in the public domain about the so-called ‘demographic crisis’; the fact we all have to work longer; and the cost of the increasing proportion of pensioners in our societies. It is, therefore, good that with this book, Timonen addresses some fundamental questions such as: what is ageing? And why is it important? This is done from a range of perspectives including the social, political and economic and covers a very broad range of issues that are structured into four broad themes: the social contexts of ageing; health, income and work in later life; care of older persons; and new behaviours, new demands and new challenges.

The book starts by considering the importance of understanding ageing and outlining the reasons why populations age. Some fascinating, less well-known statistics are presented, including that the median age in the world today is 28 (p. 23) and that ageing is more of an issue in developing countries due to a faster pace of ageing of populations and the lack of a support infrastructure for the old. It is refreshing that a balanced approach is taken, thus not dwelling on idealised perceptions of past family structures and instead highlighting potentially new developments in social networks via ‘reconstituted’ or ‘adopted’ families following divorce and re-marriage and the extended period of time grandparents have with their grandchildren, thus increasing the possibilities for inter-generational learning. Timonen questions the extent to which current structures necessarily lead to isolation and loneliness, and suggested that changes in living arrangements to fewer multi-generational households are largely a matter of choice due to the economic independence in old age that pensions can provide. Thus, financial and caring support is in fact mainly given from the older to the younger generation. Support with mortgage payments and caring for grandchildren are just two examples.

In terms of health, income and work in later life, an interesting picture is painted that includes improvements in general health and income and extended periods without employment commitments. There is a trend towards a compression of morbidity via prevention of disease and early treatment, though it is questioned to what extent this can continue given the current levels of obesity. A broad range of factors influence these developments: in addition to gender and socioeconomic status, education and culture also influence total life expectancy and disability-free life expectancy. Although it can be shown that those who die older cost the health services less, there is a distinctive lack of preventative approaches in gerontology. A clear argument is put forward that there is no excessive burden of the ‘demographic crisis’ in financial terms and with regards to the provision of care. Moreover, as healthy life spans are longer than in the past and working lives are also being extended, the common boundary of old age (currently at 65) might need to be shifted. It might also be justifiable to redistribute care and financial resources to older people in line with the reduction in younger cohorts. Overall, the vital and continued economic and social contributions of older people are highlighted.

In all discussions, the provision of high-quality formal and informal care needs to be considered. Although formal care tends to be unpopular, a diverse service is provided to accommodate different needs and settings. There is a danger of allowing care provisions to become too overwhelming and paternalistic and thus not encourage or aim at rehabilitation. Here, as in other areas, an increased involvement of older people in decision-making processes should be encouraged. We know little about informal care because most of it happens in private, but care is increasingly mixed, with the boundaries between formal and informal care being blurred and with formal and informal providers increasingly linking up and working together. Interestingly, women and men provide approximately the same amount of informal care though women are more involved in formal care provision.

The final section investigates new behaviours, new demands and new challenges. An overview of ageist practices is provided to support a discussion of the paradox that older people are generally perceived both as weak victims, for example of crime, and a powerful group who can determine policy developments. Further extending working lives may not be an altogether popular policy and would need careful deliberation and implementation but it is argued that individuals and society could benefit.

This is a very informative and in many ways uplifting book because it dispels some common myths and consistently portrays ageing as a success of improved health provisions, nutrition and labour market conditions. It is noteworthy that the order of chapters does not follow a perhaps all too common structure which starts with the extension of working lives and ends with the provision of (intensive) care, thus paralleling life courses. This does have the disadvantage, however, that fundamental definitions and much of the contextual social analysis is not presented until late in the book, thus making some switches in terminology, e.g. to seniors (p. 83) and then back to older people, difficult to evaluate in terms of their meaning and intention. Generally speaking, Timonen does an excellent job of explaining both very basic concepts and complex aspects, thus making this book accessible to a broad range of readers. There are only very few exceptions where this is neglected. Overall, therefore, this is a very balanced approach to an important and vast subject area that manages to balance a social critique that calls us to address and adapt ageing socially, politically and economically, with an optimistic view of the achievements and opportunities that these developments bring with them.