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When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi
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When Breath Becomes Air (edition 2016)

by Paul Kalanithi (Author)

MembersReviewsPopularityAverage ratingMentions
5,5373121,846 (4.24)305
"For readers of Atul Gawande, Andrew Solomon, and Anne Lamott, a profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir by a young neurosurgeon faced with a terminal cancer diagnosis who attempts to answer the question What makes a life worth living? At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, and the next he was a patient struggling to live. And just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi's transformation from a naïve medical student "possessed," as he wrote, "by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life" into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality. What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when the future, no longer a ladder toward your goals in life, flattens out into a perpetual present? What does it mean to have a child, to nurture a new life as another fades away? These are some of the questions Kalanithi wrestles with in this profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir. Paul Kalanithi died in March 2015, while working on this book, yet his words live on as a guide and a gift to us all. "I began to realize that coming face to face with my own mortality, in a sense, had changed nothing and everything," he wrote. "Seven words from Samuel Beckett began to repeat in my head: 'I can't go on. I'll go on.'" When Breath Becomes Air is an unforgettable, life-affirming reflection on the challenge of facing death and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a brilliant writer who became both. Advance praise for When Breath Becomes Air "Rattling, heartbreaking, and ultimately beautiful, the too-young Dr. Kalanithi's memoir is proof that the dying are the ones who have the most to teach us about life."--Atul Gawande "Thanks to When Breath Becomes Air, those of us who never met Paul Kalanithi will both mourn his death and benefit from his life. This is one of a handful of books I consider to be a universal donor--I would recommend it to anyone, everyone."--Ann Patchett"-- "At the age of 36, on the verge of a completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi's health began to falter. He started losing weight and was wracked by waves of excruciating back pain. A CT scan confirmed what Paul, deep down, had suspected: he had stage four lung cancer, widely disseminated. One day, he was a doctor making a living treating the dying, and the next, he was a patient struggling to live. Just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined, the culmination of decades of striving, evaporated. With incredible literary quality, philosophical acuity, and medical authority, When Breath Becomes Air approaches the questions raised by facing mortality from the dual perspective of the neurosurgeon who spent a decade meeting patients in the twilight between life and death, and the terminally ill patient who suddenly found himself living in that liminality. At the base of Paul's inquiry are essential questions, such as: What makes life worth living in the face of death? What happens when the future, instead of being a ladder toward the goals of life, flattens out into a perpetual present? When faced with a terminal diagnosis, what does it mean to have a child, to nuture a new life as another one fades away? As Paul wrote, "Before my cancer was diagnosed, I knew that someday I would die, but I didn't know when. After the diagnosis, I knew that someday I would die, but I didn't know when. But now I knew it acutely. The problem wasn't really a scientific one. The fact of death is unsettling. Yet there is no other way to live." Paul Kalanithi passed away in March 2015, while working on this book"-- On the verge of completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. Just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. Kalanithi chronicles his transformation from a naïve medical student into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality.… (more)
Member:whildebran
Title:When Breath Becomes Air
Authors:Paul Kalanithi (Author)
Info:Random House (2016), Edition: 1, 256 pages
Collections:Favorites
Rating:*****
Tags:None

Work Information

When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

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» See also 305 mentions

English (313)  French (2)  Danish (2)  Spanish (1)  All languages (318)
Showing 1-5 of 313 (next | show all)
Interesting but tough and sad read ( )
  kakadoo202 | Mar 15, 2024 |
Yeah, this was definitely a tough one to read (for the right reasons, obviously). I will say that I preferred the first half of the book to the second half, though. The first half is just so raw, insightful, and depressing. Paul's journey through medical school and residency has genuinely made consider whether or not I really want to go down the same route (for context, I'm currently applying to medical school and am also considering doing neurosurgery after graduating). It is just so blunt. Paul did not hold back with his choices of patient interactions to include; furthermore, the sheer number of work hours, the razor-sharp precision required, the enormous responsibilities held by the doctor, and the monumental risk of causing harm all contribute to making neurosurgery seem extremely daunting. The story of one of Paul's surgeon colleagues committing suicide after the death of one of his patients was unbelievably depressing to me. Worst of all was Paul's story: going through hell and back with medical school and residency, reaching the promised land of graduation, and getting offered a dream job with an insane salary, only for cancer to take it all away. The last few paragraphs written by Paul almost made me tear up, man.

Of course, I can't review this book without discussing its philosophical side. Now, just so you know, my reading literacy is atrocious; I suffer from certain mental health problems that give me a lot of issues with focus and critical thinking; consequently, my brain power is extremely low. If you're looking for insightful analytical reviews from people who are good at this stuff, my reviews (of any form of media) are not for you. Anyway, I found Paul's thoughts to be quite interesting. I don't agree with all of them (mainly because of my existential crises and lack of meaning in life), but it was quite intriguing reading about a dying man's search for meaning. I also love how it all fit together. Paul's motivations to understand the brain, meaning, life, and death were what drove him to enter medical school. Eventually, he wanted to put his patients at the forefront of his care and become a guider through their futures; he didn't want them to just be "boxes to tick off". Ultimately, the roles would reverse, and he would have to be guided through the last years of his life by his doctor. It was quite mesmerizing to read about, honestly.

I did find Paul's writing style somewhat weak, unfortunately. It wasn't bad by any means, but it wasn't that great either. The constant literary references and overlong descriptions did slow the pace of book quite a bit. Furthermore, while I found Lucy's epilogue to be poignant, I felt that it dragged on for a bit too long. Maybe, I'm a really impatient reader. I don't know. Though, I will say that I found her writing style to be easier to read than Paul's.

At the end of the day, this is going to be a tough one to get through, no matter which way you look at it. It is definitely not for the faint of heart. You'll come out of it realizing the cruelty of life. Paul and Lucy's thoughts on living and dying may give you some comfort, but you'll end up just wishing that things went a different way. It is insanely difficult not to feel that way after spending so much time in this great man's thoughts and perceptions. ( )
  Moderation3250 | Feb 24, 2024 |
KIRKUS REVIEWA neurosurgeon with a passion for literature tragically finds his perfect subject after his diagnosis of terminal lung cancer.Writing isn?t brain surgery, but it?s rare when someone adept at the latter is also so accomplished at the former. Searching for meaning and purpose in his life, Kalanithi pursued a doctorate in literature and had felt certain that he wouldn?t enter the field of medicine, in which his father and other members of his family excelled. ?But I couldn?t let go of the question,? he writes, after realizing that his goals ?didn?t quite fit in an English department.? ?Where did biology, morality, literature and philosophy intersect?? So he decided to set aside his doctoral dissertation and belatedly prepare for medical school, which ?would allow me a chance to find answers that are not in books, to find a different sort of sublime, to forge relationships with the suffering, and to keep following the question of what makes human life meaningful, even in the face of death and decay.? The author?s empathy undoubtedly made him an exceptional doctor, and the precision of his proseas well as the moral purpose underscoring it¥suggests that he could have written a good book on any subject he chose. Part of what makes this book so essential is the fact that it was written under a death sentence following the diagnosis that upended his life, just as he was preparing to end his residency and attract offers at the top of his profession. Kalanithi learned he might have 10 years to live or perhaps five. Should he return to neurosurgery (he could and did), or should he write (he also did)? Should he and his wife have a baby? They did, eight months before he died, which was less than two years after the original diagnosis. ?The fact of death is unsettling,? he understates. ?Yet there is no other way to live.?A moving meditation on mortality by a gifted writer whose dual perspectives of physician and patient provide a singular clarity.
  bentstoker | Jan 26, 2024 |
Heartbreaking and thought provoking. Paul Kalanithi died in his thirties from lung cancer. He was an accomplished and talented surgeon and author. It's so difficult to accept that such a bright light was turned off when there was so much potential there. It's especially hard to realize that he was nearly ten years younger than me when he passed. I still feel young now so I can't imagine dealing with this when even younger.

Amazingly, this book is not depressing in the least. Learning about Kalanithi's career in neurosurgery/neuroscience and how he came to understand death, meaningful life, and the plight of his patients. Even more revelatory was how, when he became a patient, he realized he did not even begin to understand their situation. With this book he helps us all to understand both sides of the equation and I feel better for having read his words. ( )
  hmonkeyreads | Jan 25, 2024 |
Wow. I really didn’t know what this book was about but a friend had reviewed it saying that it was phenomenal and I thought the title was intriguing so I decided to read it. This book was so well written. It is incredibly sad but I also didn’t want to put it down. The author truly wrote from a place of deep thought, experience, and reality. The things he confesses to struggling with as a doctor and all the questions he had about life as well as his description of surgeries and life as he had experienced was written so well that I had a picture in my mind at all times of what he was talking about. When reading the epilogue written by his wife I definitely shed a few tears. ( )
  Kayleigh_Martin | Jan 7, 2024 |
Showing 1-5 of 313 (next | show all)
“When Breath Becomes Air” is gripping from the start. But it becomes even more so as Dr. Kalanithi tries to reinvent himself in various ways with no idea what will happen.

Part of this book’s tremendous impact comes from the obvious fact that its author was such a brilliant polymath. And part comes from the way he conveys what happened to him — passionately working and striving, deferring gratification, waiting to live, learning to die — so well. None of it is maudlin. Nothing is exaggerated. As he wrote to a friend: “It’s just tragic enough and just imaginable enough.” And just important enough to be unmissable.
 

» Add other authors (29 possible)

Author nameRoleType of authorWork?Status
Paul Kalanithiprimary authorall editionscalculated
Kalanithi, LucyEpiloguesecondary authorall editionsconfirmed
Ake, RachelCover designersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Barlović, AleksandraTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Bok, Annekesecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Campbell, CassandraNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Cosgrove, LizDesignersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Faimali, ManuelaTraduttoresecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Fruteau, Cécilesecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
폴 칼라니티Authorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Kalanthi, LucyAfterwordsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Lottie DaviesCover artistsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Malhotra, SunilNarratorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
McFadden, Suszi Luriesecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Rekiaro, IlkkaTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Rey, Santiago delTranslatorsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Verghese, AbrahamForewordsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
von der Groeben, Norbertsecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed
Wurster, GabyÜbersetzersecondary authorsome editionsconfirmed

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Epigraph
You that seek what life is in death,
Now find it air that once was breath.
New names unknown, old names gone:
Till time end bodies, but souls none.
  Reader! then make time, while you be,
  But steps to your eternity.

— Baron Brooke Fulke Greville, “Caelica 83”
Dedication
For Cady
First words
I knew with certainty that I would never be a doctor.
 —  Part One
I flipped through the CT scan images, the diagnosis obvious: the lungs were matted with innumerable tumours, the spine deformed, a full lobe of the liver obliterated.
 —  Prologue
Quotations
I knew with certainty that I would never be a doctor. I stretched out in the sun, relaxing on a desert plateau just above our house. My uncle, a doctor, like so many of my relatives, had asked me earlier that day what I planned on doing for a career, now that I was heading off to college, and the question barely registered. If you had forced me to answer, I suppose I would have said a writer, but frankly, thoughts of any career at this point seemed absurd. I was leaving this small Arizona town in a few weeks, and I felt less like someone preparing to climb a career ladder than a buzzing electron about to achieve escape velocity, flinging out into a strange and sparkling universe.
Though we had free will, we were also biological organisms -- the brain was an organ, subject to all the laws of physics, too! Literature provided a rich account of human meaning; the brain, the, was the machinery that somehow enabled it. It seemed like magic.
Literature provided, I believed, the richest material for moral reflection.
Moral speculation was puny compared moral action.
I had come to see language as an almost supernatural force, existing between people, bringing our brains, shielded in centimeter-thick skulls, into communion.
Last words
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"For readers of Atul Gawande, Andrew Solomon, and Anne Lamott, a profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir by a young neurosurgeon faced with a terminal cancer diagnosis who attempts to answer the question What makes a life worth living? At the age of thirty-six, on the verge of completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, and the next he was a patient struggling to live. And just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi's transformation from a naïve medical student "possessed," as he wrote, "by the question of what, given that all organisms die, makes a virtuous and meaningful life" into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality. What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when the future, no longer a ladder toward your goals in life, flattens out into a perpetual present? What does it mean to have a child, to nurture a new life as another fades away? These are some of the questions Kalanithi wrestles with in this profoundly moving, exquisitely observed memoir. Paul Kalanithi died in March 2015, while working on this book, yet his words live on as a guide and a gift to us all. "I began to realize that coming face to face with my own mortality, in a sense, had changed nothing and everything," he wrote. "Seven words from Samuel Beckett began to repeat in my head: 'I can't go on. I'll go on.'" When Breath Becomes Air is an unforgettable, life-affirming reflection on the challenge of facing death and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a brilliant writer who became both. Advance praise for When Breath Becomes Air "Rattling, heartbreaking, and ultimately beautiful, the too-young Dr. Kalanithi's memoir is proof that the dying are the ones who have the most to teach us about life."--Atul Gawande "Thanks to When Breath Becomes Air, those of us who never met Paul Kalanithi will both mourn his death and benefit from his life. This is one of a handful of books I consider to be a universal donor--I would recommend it to anyone, everyone."--Ann Patchett"-- "At the age of 36, on the verge of a completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi's health began to falter. He started losing weight and was wracked by waves of excruciating back pain. A CT scan confirmed what Paul, deep down, had suspected: he had stage four lung cancer, widely disseminated. One day, he was a doctor making a living treating the dying, and the next, he was a patient struggling to live. Just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined, the culmination of decades of striving, evaporated. With incredible literary quality, philosophical acuity, and medical authority, When Breath Becomes Air approaches the questions raised by facing mortality from the dual perspective of the neurosurgeon who spent a decade meeting patients in the twilight between life and death, and the terminally ill patient who suddenly found himself living in that liminality. At the base of Paul's inquiry are essential questions, such as: What makes life worth living in the face of death? What happens when the future, instead of being a ladder toward the goals of life, flattens out into a perpetual present? When faced with a terminal diagnosis, what does it mean to have a child, to nuture a new life as another one fades away? As Paul wrote, "Before my cancer was diagnosed, I knew that someday I would die, but I didn't know when. After the diagnosis, I knew that someday I would die, but I didn't know when. But now I knew it acutely. The problem wasn't really a scientific one. The fact of death is unsettling. Yet there is no other way to live." Paul Kalanithi passed away in March 2015, while working on this book"-- On the verge of completing a decade's worth of training as a neurosurgeon, Kalanithi was diagnosed with stage IV lung cancer. Just like that, the future he and his wife had imagined evaporated. Kalanithi chronicles his transformation from a naïve medical student into a neurosurgeon at Stanford working in the brain, the most critical place for human identity, and finally into a patient and new father confronting his own mortality.

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