Two sorts of ending up

By a fortunate coincidence these books treat the same subject: old age at the mercy of time, the ‘blind rider’ of Goytisolo’s title. Ageing is a matter of temporary victories and final defeats. At 75, you can succeed in getting on your horse by using a mounting block and shortening your nearside stirrup leather; at 81, you can’t hold your horse out hunting. You give up. What is the point of it all? Goytisolo and Garc