Judith Viorst on Happiness, Agency, and the Art of Aging

About this episode

Judith Viorst discusses happiness, aging, and the complexities of life with humor and insight.

In this episode, celebrated children’s book author, poet and memoirist Judith Viorst brings her irrepressible wit, humor, and insight to every age and stage of life. We talk about growing up, raising children, and living well - including the story of how her family gave up Christmas. She reflects on her lifelong love of “messy” characters, from Max in Sendak’s Where the Wild Things Are to her own Lulu. Her wisdom and advice is especially meaningful as we take stock of the year and set our intentions for the year ahead. In Making the Best of What’s Left: When We’re Too Old to Get the Chairs Reupholstered, Judith confesses, “I never ever send a text while driving, and not just because I don’t know how to text.” She discusses the afterlife (She doesn’t believe in it, but if it exists, she hopes her sister-in-law isn’t there). She complains to her dead husband (“I need you fixing our damn circuit breakers. I need you! Could you please stop being dead?”). And she explores the late-life meanings of wisdom and happiness and second chances and home. With a wit that defies age, Viorst navigates the terrain of loss. Judith Viorst is the author of the beloved Alexander and the Terrible…

People in this episode

Host: Tali Rosenblatt Cohen

Guest: Judith Viorst

Topics covered

• happiness
• aging
• parenting
• wisdom
• loss
• literature

Keywords

• Judith Viorst
• happiness
• aging
• parenting
• literature
• wisdom
• loss

Mentioned in this episode

Books & works: Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, Necessary Losses, It's Hard to Be Hip Over 30 & Other Tragedies of Married Life, Forever 50, Where the Wild Things Are

More episodes of The Five Books: Jewish Authors on the Books That Shaped Them

• Laurie Frankel on the Jewish Ability to Hold Multiple Truths · June 9, 2026 · 54 min
• Nicholas Lemann on Being Jewish in the Shadow of the American South · May 26, 2026 · 1h 8m
• Fran Fabriczki on “Homelooseness” and a Love Letter to Los Angeles · May 12, 2026 · 42 min
• Adeena Sussman on Flavor as a Jewish Language · April 28, 2026 · 48 min
• Alicia Jo Rabins on Composing a Life of Meaning · April 14, 2026 · 53 min
• Matti Friedman on the Stories that Built a People · March 31, 2026 · 1h 2m