Synopses & Reviews
This book is the first to analyze the phenomenon of international retirement migration, to trace the story of the migrants from their old to their new homes, and to examine the conceptual and policy contexts of this relatively new form of transnational mobility.
The Costa del Sol, the Algarve, Tuscany and Malta attract increasing numbers of retirees each year, especially British and other Northern European citizens. This study provides new insights into the motivations of the mainly well-off and well-educated retirees who settle in Southern Europe and how they manage the transition. It demonstrates the roles of international tourism and of living abroad earlier in life in the formation of the ambition to retire abroad, and it describes the dominantly positive consequences of the moves. The challenges of providing health and welfare services for the ageing population are also explored. The book develops fascinating perspectives on new constructions of old age as a period for personal development and positive changes, and on the ways by which Northern European retirees resident in the South are forming a new pan-national European identity.
This book will have wide appeal to a range of readerships and its cross-disciplinary nature will make it relevant for courses on sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, tourism and leisure studies, migration studies, gerontology, social and health policy and area studies.
Review
"If you are considering uprooting, my advice is to read this valuable book before you take the plunge." --
Times Higher Education Supplement"Good use is made of oral testimony backed up by statistical data in this rigorous study." --Business Archives: Sources and History
"This book links tourism with the study of migration and social gerontology and thus demonstrates tourism can make a contribution in ways traditional academics value. Hence this books should help convince sceptics that tourism is an important field in its own right and can assist in the wider understanding of societal issues." --Annuls of Tourism Research
"Sunset Lives represents a remarkable contribution to the study of a 'new' migration phenomenon which we can reasonably expect to have an increase of in the future. The importance of this phenomenon needs to be studied since it usually remains rather hidden behind other migratory flows which are seen as more crucial and visible for society. Finally, the book suggests some important questions and new lines of research which demand a wider exploration." --Journal of Ethnic and Migration Studies
Review
“This fascinating study reveals the complexity of people’s journeys undertaken as they search for community. Their stories of pursuing this often elusive goal are ones of resourcefulness and hope.”
Review
“A welcome addition to the literature on international retirement migration, offering important and significant conceptual insights into community, belonging, and home through in-depth analysis grounded in the daily lives, dreams, and disappointments of working class women migrants. Highly recommended.”
Review
“A beautifully crafted book confirming the importance of subjectivity and agency framed within persistent gendered social worlds.”
Review
“A good addition to the methodological literature on narratives in the particularly under-researched area of women’s retirement migration experiences.”
Synopsis
This book is the first to analyze the phenomenon of international retirement migration, to trace the story of the migrants from their old to their new homes, and to examine the conceptual and policy contexts of this relatively new form of transnational mobility.
The Costa del Sol, the Algarve, Tuscany and Malta attract increasing numbers of retirees each year, especially British and other Northern European citizens. This study provides new insights into the motivations of the mainly well-off and well-educated retirees who settle in Southern Europe and how they manage the transition. It demonstrates the roles of international tourism and of living abroad earlier in life in the formation of the ambition to retire abroad, and it describes the dominantly positive consequences of the moves. The challenges of providing health and welfare services for the ageing population are also explored. The book develops fascinating perspectives on new constructions of old age as a period for personal development and positive changes, and on the ways by which Northern European retirees resident in the South are forming a new pan-national European identity.
This book will have wide appeal to a range of readerships and its cross-disciplinary nature will make it relevant for courses on sociology, anthropology, cultural studies, tourism and leisure studies, migration studies, gerontology, social and health policy and area studies.
Synopsis
The first book to explore working class British women’s experiences of retirement migration, Retiring to Spain provides a new theoretical framework for understanding these Third Age movements. Focusing on the voices of women either considering return migration to the United Kingdom or permanent or temporary settlement in Spain, the book takes a narrative approach as it follows their journeys to seek, recreate, and construct community in a new context and unravels their experiences of belonging and non-belonging. By offering a much-needed critical perspective, Retiring to Spain challenges overly simplified definitions of community.
About the Author
Anya Ahmed is senior lecturer in social policy at the University of Salford, UK.
Table of Contents
Part One: Lives in context Conceptualising, theorising and narrating retirement migration
Locating the women: macro, meso and micro contexts
Boundary spanning and reconstitution: retirement migration and the search for community
Part Two: Lived experiences
Leaving the UK: motives, agency and decision-making processes
Living in Spain: ‘idyllisation’ and realisation
Belonging to networks: reconciling agency and positionalities
Renegotiating family relationships: managing intimacy from a distance
Locating ‘home’ and community: the end point of plot movement
Conclusion: nostalgia, community and belonging: linking time and space
Afterword