At this moment, one in three Americans is entering midlife, and many are wondering, "How did I get to be this old?" Plenty will turn to miracle creams, injections, fillers, and surgery to reverse the hands of time, but Kessler investigates the largely unexplored side of anti-aging: what it takes to be younger, not just look younger. Guided by an open but pleasantly skeptical mind, a thirst for adventure, and a sense of humor, she investigates America's youth obsession and decides, on a very personal level, what to do about it. She is at once the careful reporter, the immersion journalist, the self-designated lab rat, and a midlife woman who is not interested in being as old as her driver's license insists she is.

Counterclockwise is a lively quest to discover how to maintain stamina, vitality, fortitude, and creativity right to the very end.

"The human smile is an anti-gravity device. Kessler's delightful, witty book actually takes 20 yearsoff your face!"—Mary Roach, author of Stiff and Gulp