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Loading... The Diving Bell and the Butterfly: A Memoir of Life in Deathby Jean-Dominique Bauby
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will love Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. stephenmakin | Jul 7, 2009 |   As other reviewers have commented, this book struck me not so much for the story within, but the fact that you know it was all dictated by Bauby blinking one eyelid. I read this book in two days but to be honest I was scared to begin it: I wasn't sure what it would be like. In fact, this book is many things, sad, funny, despairing, hopeful, accepting...above all, honest. One reviewer said this book was nothing special, but oh my god it IS special. Everyone should read this who moans about their life; who goes about the day-to-day without appreciating anything; who doesn't realise that your life can be shattered instantly. The book made me cry. It also made me ashamed that if I had known Bauby, I might have been one of those who never got in contact after his stroke, or who ran away upon seeing him. If you've never heard of locked-in syndrome, or even if you have, read this book. It is worth it. (  )pinkyslippers | Jul 4, 2009 | 1  An inspirational read. If you are feeling bored, fed up or disatisfied with your life, read this book and appreciate all you have. (  )riverwillow | Jun 9, 2009 | An amazing feat of a book, which is remarkably well written and oozing with humour. I felt compelled to read it slowly, and had to keep pausing to take in the fact that every letter had been dictated through the blink of one eye. Everyone should take the time to read this book, Jean Dominique Bauby is an inspiration. ( )LadyHazy | Jun 1, 2009 | Hmm. A marmite book - you either love it or loathe it. For me, the only interest lied in the story-tellers own position. His is a tale of suffering and overcoming the odds; it follows the template that such tales usually do, of the troubled normal life, the terrible accident (or illness), the struggle in hospital, the desire to give up, the strength that is discovered deep down. I've heard it so many times before; I hate being blunt, but this story wasn't news to me, and wasn't interesting enough for me to want to consider it 'one of the most important novels of the century.' (  )soylentgreen23 | May 27, 2009 | 0.067 seconds to build listing  no reviews | add a review
Amazon.com (ISBN 0375401156, Hardcover)We've all got our idiosyncrasies when it comes to writing--a special chair we have to sit in, a certain kind of yellow paper we absolutely must use. To create this tremendously affecting memoir, Jean-Dominique Bauby used the only tool available to him--his left eye--with which he blinked out its short chapters, letter by letter. Two years ago, Bauby, then the 43-year-old editor-in-chief of Elle France, suffered a rare stroke to the brain stem; only his left eye and brain escaped damage. Rather than accept his "locked in" situation as a kind of death, Bauby ignited a fire of the imagination under himself and lived his last days--he died two days after the French publication of this slim volume--spiritually unfettered. In these pages Bauby journeys to exotic places he has and has not been, serving himself delectable gourmet meals along the way (surprise: everything's ripe and nothing burns). In the simplest of terms he describes how it feels to see reflected in a window "the head of a man who seemed to have emerged from a vat of formaldehyde."(retrieved from Amazon Fri, 24 Apr 2009 07:57:53 -0400) The first test round has been closed. Visit the Open Shelves Classification group for details. |
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Before his stroke he was a editor of a woman's magazine - which comes through in the excellent qualitiy of his writting. He takes you on his dreams and into his world. (