Former "Saturday Night Live" and "Rugrats" writer Patricia Marx has a new book, "Let's Be Less Stupid: An Attempt to Maintain My Mental Faculties" out in the market.
In an age when many people dread they may be the next victim of cognitive decline or dementia, Marx relates how she battled against such a possibility by doing free online IQ tests and brain exercises, popping supplements, and meditating to quell her anxiety about memory loss and aging, NPR reported.
The American staff writer for The New Yorker shares several simple ways to jog the memory and preserve the gray matter. One of these is by answering brain teasers and quizzes, which the writer has incorporated in her book.
Like her first book, "Him Her Him Again the End of Him," the new book is a fun read that is somewhat revealing. While Marx's first book focuses on the romantic liaison of a protagonist that tends to overthink, "Let's Be Less Stupid: An Attempt to Maintain My Mental Faculties" delves on how to improve cognitive functioning in the present day, from a first-hand perspective.
Marx acknowledges that life can take a 360-degree turn, especially as people advance in years, leaving the body, notably the brain, feeble. It is clear that the author has boned up on brain boosters and how that vital part of the body can work or fail.
Marx owns up to the fact that her brain may not be as "quick on the draw" as it once was. There are witticisms thrown in to engage readers. She also glosses over the fact that perhaps the present-day bombardment of information has something to do with her mind's faltering state, and then attributes it to age.
"How can it be expected to function when it must check my e-mail and texts every two to three seconds?" Amazon quoted.
Marx has enjoyed a long-standing writing career, and has won the praise of colleagues and book lovers for her brand of humor, wit, insight, and relatable writing style.