FITZGERALD, Cathy

PERSONAL: Married; children: four.

ADDRESSES: Agent—c/o Author Mail, Rodale Press, 733 Third Avenue, 15th Floor, New York, NY 10017-3204.

CAREER: Educator, administrator, businessperson, and author. Retirement Living from A to Z, company co-owner.

WRITINGS:

(With Jan Cullinane) The New Retirement: The Ultimate Guide to the Rest of Your Life, Rodale (Emmaus, PA), 2004.

SIDELIGHTS: Cathy Fitzgerald is a college teacher and co-author with Jan Cullinane of The New Retirement: The Ultimate Guide to the Rest of Your Life. In their book, the authors, who conduct seminars on retiring through their company Retirement Living from A to Z, address many of the issues concerning people nearing retirement. The authors address topics such as when is the right time to retire, where are the best places to retire to, and how to make retirement funds last. In addition to other important considerations, such as how retirees can use their newfound freedom from work, the authors talk about the best places for retirement, working after retirement, and tax issues. The two retirement experts also explore more subjective issues, such as what makes retirement successful for an individual. The book includes real-life case studies that illustrate the decisions made by people who have retired or are nearing retirement and delves into the reasoning why they made their choices. For example, some retirees start new businesses, others move to new areas, and still others decide to travel extensively. The book contains appendices to help people plan for retirement and a list of recommended books designed to help retirees further plan for the future.

Writing in Booklist, Stephanie Zvirin commented, "The authors … understand just what boomers want to know." Carol J. Elsen noted in Library Journal that the authors "lay out key issues to consider when planning for this major transition" and said that the book is "essential for public library business collections." A Publishers Weekly contributor wrote that retiring baby boomers are going to "face a daunting array of options and decisions" and commented that Fitzgerald and Cullinane "offer a comprehensive guide to navigating this complex maze."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

books

Cullinane, Jan, and Cathy Fitzgerald, The New Retirement: The Ultimate Guide to the Rest of Your Life, Rodale (Emmaus, PA), 2004.

periodicals

Booklist, July, 2004, Stephanie Zvirin, review of The New Retirement: The Ultimate Guide to the Rest of Your Life, p. 1806; October 15, 2004, Brad Hooper, review of The New Retirement, p. 387.

Library Journal, August, 2004, Carol J. Elsen, review of The New Retirement, p. 91.

Publishers Weekly, May 17, 2004, review of The New Retirement, p. 45.*