What do you think?
Rate this book
Jeanne Calment: From Van Gogh's Time to Ours, 122 Extraordinary Years
Jeanne Calment died in August 1997 aged 122 years. Her life remains the longest ever documented and has defied the theories of some scientists who postulated that humans could not live that long. This volume seeks to discover the secret to Calment's longevity.
- GenresNonfictionHistory
215 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 1998
41 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 of 1 review
February 12, 2020
A short book but worth a read for a glimpse at Madam Calment's humor and a sense of how she lived. Jeanne Calment lived 122 years, a record not surpassed, at last count, for 20+ years.
Some examples of her witticisms:
1. re: attitude towards life “I had fun, I’m having fun”
2. “Excuse me if I’m clinging on to life, but my parents wove me from tight thread”
3. [how did you do the dishes] “with spit my dear; I just needed to command”
4. “the mayor is like pretty women, he makes himself wanted”
5. “wit doesn’t make girls pretty”
Interesting clues on her ancestry that concord with genetics research on Centenarians and Supercentenarians (ala Nir Barzilai)
1. her family had low infant mortality compared to surrounding population over 3 generations
2. 24% of people over 3 generations in her family exceeded 60 years, compared to 13% in control group
3. Her brother lived until 97
4. A female ancestor of hers lived until 94 (!!!) in the 1700's, which is very long
Little quirks about her as a person that could be little research questions or concord with some findings in longevity research
1. her walking speed was fast compared to people 20 years younger than her, a sign of vigor
2. she broke her leg at age 100 but healed very quickly
3. natural tendency towards happiness
4. very healthy in spite of 90+ years of smoking
5. outdoorsy type of person, very active throughout her life
6. she was proud of her 'wrist strength' when she was younger, which let her be a good shot.
7. she was always in a hurry, always walking very fast
8. mentally, she was very witty, even with the impediment of her severe deafness
9. Very oriented to time/place/caretakers even when she was blind and mostly deaf
10. She was very independent-minded: she refused cataract surgery even though its relatively low risk, and they speculate she quit smoking more because she didn't want to ask for help lighting a cigarette rather than health reasons.
Worth reading for the funny quotes, interesting anecdotes, and the copious evidence of how remarkably healthy, vigorous, and resilient she was even into her 100's! Which is remarkable even for centenarians, who don't tend to bounce back as easily as she did.
Some examples of her witticisms:
1. re: attitude towards life “I had fun, I’m having fun”
2. “Excuse me if I’m clinging on to life, but my parents wove me from tight thread”
3. [how did you do the dishes] “with spit my dear; I just needed to command”
4. “the mayor is like pretty women, he makes himself wanted”
5. “wit doesn’t make girls pretty”
Interesting clues on her ancestry that concord with genetics research on Centenarians and Supercentenarians (ala Nir Barzilai)
1. her family had low infant mortality compared to surrounding population over 3 generations
2. 24% of people over 3 generations in her family exceeded 60 years, compared to 13% in control group
3. Her brother lived until 97
4. A female ancestor of hers lived until 94 (!!!) in the 1700's, which is very long
Little quirks about her as a person that could be little research questions or concord with some findings in longevity research
1. her walking speed was fast compared to people 20 years younger than her, a sign of vigor
2. she broke her leg at age 100 but healed very quickly
3. natural tendency towards happiness
4. very healthy in spite of 90+ years of smoking
5. outdoorsy type of person, very active throughout her life
6. she was proud of her 'wrist strength' when she was younger, which let her be a good shot.
7. she was always in a hurry, always walking very fast
8. mentally, she was very witty, even with the impediment of her severe deafness
9. Very oriented to time/place/caretakers even when she was blind and mostly deaf
10. She was very independent-minded: she refused cataract surgery even though its relatively low risk, and they speculate she quit smoking more because she didn't want to ask for help lighting a cigarette rather than health reasons.
Worth reading for the funny quotes, interesting anecdotes, and the copious evidence of how remarkably healthy, vigorous, and resilient she was even into her 100's! Which is remarkable even for centenarians, who don't tend to bounce back as easily as she did.
Displaying 1 of 1 review