Richard Smith's wildly popular books have made America laugh about everything from wedding-night jitters to weight loss. Now he turns his comic talent to a subject he's about to experience himself: climbing the half-century hill.

Over the next 15 years, 52 million Gen Xers will celebrate their 50th birthdays. With Smith as their guide, the Gen Xers will know exactly what lies ahead. Not only does turning 50 mean you survived your 40s, but you get to join the AARP, answer your front door in bedroom slippers, and spend your kid's inheritance on liposuction. You also know you're 50 when...

Your main form of aerobic exercise is getting up to change the channel; An obscene phone call makes you chuckle; You think a mosh pit is something found at the center of an exotic fruit; You wonder who'll die first--you or your money; You wish the "ol' ticker" had a quartz movement"Performance anxiety" refers to your golf game.

With 200 of these cleverly illustrated clues and quips as well as comparison charts, entertaining graphs, and hilarious lists, You Know You're 50 When... will be the must-have, must-give birthday present for every soon-to-be-50 American.