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Paul Cann and Malcolm Dean (eds), Unequal Ageing: The Untold Story of Exclusion in Old Age , The Policy Press, Bristol, UK, 2009, 192 pp., pbk £17.99, ISBN 13: 978 1 84742 411 2.

mental comfort (in which the environment appears less significant and quality of life is rated good or very good), environmental management (individuals are acutely aware of the environment, demonstrate management or strategies of daily living, and rate quality of life as ‘neither good nor poor, or good’ (p. 89) and environmental distress (no evidence of place attachment, quality of life generally rated poor to very poor). These categories are explored in more detail through consideration of eight case-study participants. Another chapter presents a reconceptualisation of the person–environment relationship. Drawing on further detailed analysis, it is proposed that time (including past, present and future lives), ‘ intervening variables ’ such as religion, and the lifecourse should be considered in the person–environment relationship. The three chapters in the final section of the book, ‘Refocusing the Person–Environment Fit ’, present ‘ the way forward’ for environmental gerontology research, policy and practice, and considers the influences, opportunities and challenges for those interested in the process of ageing in place. Reflecting on the book, I am not sure about the purpose of the international comparison. Ultimately, I learnt little about how the specific Canadian and British political, historical, social and economic contexts impacted on the experiences of ageing, the policy recommendations are generally skewed towards a British rather Canadian audience, and I wondered whether all the recommendations were supported by the evidence presented. While this is undoubtedly a book about ageing in place, reading about the participants’ experiences, it seems that these are not only stories about ageing, but also about how place itself ages : about the decline of environmental quality, the loss of neighbours and friends. Although readers are offered at times discussion of neighbourhood change, this is relegated to the spatial backdrop rather than part of the intertwining of the place of ageing and the ageing of place. It would be unfair though, to leave a critical impression of this well-written book. The analysis and discussion are built on solid research, and the participants’ voices come through strongly, though I was a little surprised to read that ‘not since the ground-breaking work of Peter Townsend in the 1950s have the experiences of older people living in environments characterised by multiple risks been examined in depth’ (p. 3). Hyperbole aside, this is an excellent example of how well-crafted empirical research can make a forceful contribution to debates on environment and ageing.