Many people claim that comedy is all about timing . . . which can be hard to do in a book. But with deft twists that I defy you to see coming, Mr. Cosby takes you down a laugh-ridden labyrinth of all the foolish things people do about their health. What makes the humor especially powerful is that Mr. Cosby is frequently telling stories about himself. But at the same time you'll recognize yourself . . . and people you know in these stories.

The basic set-up is that Mr. Cosby is excited about turning 65 . . . because he can spend his social security check to secretly buy food that his wife doesn't want him to eat because it's unhealthy.

That happy thought is muddled, though, when Mr. Cosby goes to have a physical. He finds that he has the body of someone much younger than 65 . . . except for a sky-high cholesterol level and a partially blocked carotid artery (the one that takes blood to the brain). Suddenly, he has visions of all that unhealthy food he has eaten all over the years. Ugh!

From there, Mr. Cosby takes you on a funny excursion into all of the other ways that our bodies run down hill, the ways we rationalize "not" doing what we should and the foolish ways that doctors try to overcome our self-destructive tendencies.

Then, he looks around to see the other bad habits that people have . . . and also rationalize, and finds similar room for humor.

If you are like me, you can almost hear Mr. Cosby's voice as he delivers these wry witty commentaries on the human condition.

What makes them so funny is that he's not exaggerating very much! People are really funny about their vices.

All those who really love food will get the biggest kick out of seeing their obsession exposed. As one such person, he had me laughing aloud during many points in the book.

The book also contains occasional illustrations by George Booth that add to the fun. My favorite is the one on the back cover of the dust jacket.

One of the great beauties of this book is that each story builds on the previous ones . . . so new information creates humorous echoes in your memory that remind you of the rest of the book. The cumulative effect is marvelous.

As I finished the book, I began to wonder why we are so perverse in harming ourselves. Sure, Mr. Cosby has provided lots of "excuses" but we're all smart enough not to believe our own excuses. Maybe we just want to be indulged like most of our parents did while we were little . . . but no one does any more now that we are grown. It that's the case, find your indulgence in less unhealthy ways. Remember, 65 is coming for most of us!

This reads like a Cosby monologue, almost stream-of-consciousness, whatever's on his mind. It's funny, but mostly in a low-key way, not like a stand-up routine with lots of laughs. He reminisces about the old days, when he ate whatever he wanted, such as four buttery croissants for breakfast, with jam and extra butter on each one. He talks about his new regimen of sensible portions. Sure, the doctor tells him, you can still have pepperoni pizza, but just one slice. And only every three months.

The funniest bits include the story of his mother, who was quite resourceful at hiding her favorite forbidden food, pork chops, from her grown children, who were trying to keep her on her diet.

Another funny book from the Coz.