Tornstam (social gerontology, Uppsala U.) describes a theory of aging that transcends the dualism of activity and disengagement, and explains how theory was developed from the unsatisfying mismatch of common assumptions within gerontology and some empirical findings. He does not claim that other theories within social gerontology are invalid, just that there are certain developmental patterns they do not cover properly. Annotation ©2005 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)