When Breath Becomes Air: Kalanithi, Paul, Verghese, Abraham: 9780812988406: Amazon.com: Books

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Abraham Verghese

When Breath Becomes Air Hardcover – Deckle Edge, January 12, 2016

by Paul Kalanithi (Author), Abraham Verghese (Foreword)

4.7 107,086 ratings

in Medical Professional Biographies

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#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • PULITZER PRIZE FINALIST • This inspiring, exquisitely observed memoir finds hope and beauty in the face of insurmountable odds as an idealistic young neurosurgeon attempts to answer the question, What makes a life worth living?

“Unmissable . . . Finishing this book and then forgetting about it is simply not an option.”—Janet Maslin, The New York Times

ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR: The New York Times Book Review, People, NPR, The Washington Post, Slate, Harper’s Bazaar, Time Out New York, Publishers Weekly, BookPage

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.

Finalist for the PEN Center USA Literary Award in Creative Nonfiction and the Books for a Better Life Award in Inspirational Memoir

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Print length

228 pages
Language

English
Publisher

Random House
Publication date

January 12, 2016
Dimensions

5.28 x 0.9 x 7.79 inches
ISBN-10

081298840X
ISBN-13

978-0812988406
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Customer reviews

107,086 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the writing quality beautiful, breathtaking, and poetic. They say the story is profound, compelling, and personal. Readers describe the story as heartbreaking yet inspirational, emotional, and not grim. They also describe the book as memorable, captivating, and enjoyable. Readers mention the pacing is very moving and cogent. They say the book has emotional depth.

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Writing quality Thought provoking Story quality Heartbreaking story Readability Pacing Emotional depth Honesty

3,439 customers mention "Writing quality"3,352 positive87 negative

Customers find the writing quality of the book beautiful, breathtaking, and poetic. They say it's a worthwhile read with a simple and clear message. Readers also mention the author's writing style is simple, straightforward, and eloquent.

"This book is breathtaking, left me speechless. So beautiful but so heartbreaking at the same time…. One of the best books I’ve read so far." Read more

"...The book is slim (229 pages) but extraordinarily powerful, moving, poetic, and philosophical...." Read more

"...Great read" Read more

"...I gave this book 5 stars for it’s thought provoking, beautiful prose, as well as for writing it’s way through a death with utmost dignity...." Read more

2,918 customers mention "Thought provoking"2,875 positive43 negative

Customers find the book thought-provoking, profound, and powerful. They say it's compelling and personal. Readers mention the book is informative and a perfect balance between science and philosophy.

"This book is breathtaking, left me speechless. So beautiful but so heartbreaking at the same time…. One of the best books I’ve read so far." Read more

"...so promising is the starting point for a sincere, sensitive, and inspiring journey that you will take with him in his memoir to discover the meaning..." Read more

"...It is a beautifully, heartrending, deeply philosophical piece by an accomplished young man who dedicated heart and mind to his work and study in..." Read more

"...Most readers will find it extremely compelling and very personal. It is the nitty gritty of this man’s inner being...." Read more

2,592 customers mention "Story quality"2,569 positive23 negative

Customers find the story beautiful, sensational, and a masterpiece. They also describe the epilogue as the best part of the book. Readers say the book is important for everyone involved in health care. They mention it's powerful and outrageously kind.

"This book is breathtaking, left me speechless. So beautiful but so heartbreaking at the same time…. One of the best books I’ve read so far." Read more

"...When Breath Becomes Air is one of the most important books I have ever read, ranking up there with Night by Elie Wiesel and Man’s Search for Meaning..." Read more

"...It is a beautifully, heartrending, deeply philosophical piece by an accomplished young man who dedicated heart and mind to his work and study in..." Read more

"...This book is so beautiful and profound because Paul Kalanithi and his wife Lucy stand tall in the face of illness and death and just talk about it...." Read more

1,079 customers mention "Heartbreaking story"965 positive114 negative

Customers find the story heartbreaking yet inspirational. They say it's emotional and makes them cry. Readers also mention the book reveals empathy inside them.

"This book is breathtaking, left me speechless. So beautiful but so heartbreaking at the same time…. One of the best books I’ve read so far." Read more

"...They were both comforting and inspirational...." Read more

"...Heartbreaking yet inspirational. A must read!" Read more

"...The book was extremely well written and it is touching even to the darkest heart out there’s. After reading the book I see doctors, surgeons,..." Read more

708 customers mention "Readability"611 positive97 negative

Customers find the book memorable, captivating, and enjoyable. They also describe it as a provocative read that is filled with dreams.

"...This story reminds the audience that life is fleeting and we only ever get one chance to live it - at least that we know for certain...." Read more

"...This friend is one of the most loving, kind, joyful, and generous people one could ever hope to meet...." Read more

"...There is no prognosticating, no rationalizing, no baloney – just real, raw feelings throughout the book.And it ends suddenly. Paul dies...." Read more

"...with cancer and the associated turmoil were very candid, deep, and lasting...." Read more

439 customers mention "Pacing"432 positive7 negative

Customers find the pacing of the book very moving, wise, and profound. They say it will bring them to tears and move them to action. Readers also mention the book is cogent and powerful.

"...The book is slim (229 pages) but extraordinarily powerful, moving, poetic, and philosophical...." Read more

"...to Paul’s own words to finally Lucy’s, this was a refreshing and moving book. As a dad, Paul’s love for Cady shone thru and is highly relatable." Read more

"...It is a cogent and powerful tale of living with death...." Read more

"...Loved the book for it’s sensitivity , the writing which was honest, and moving, explained the switching of doctor /patient relationship, the..." Read more

397 customers mention "Emotional depth"381 positive16 negative

Customers find the emotions in the book genuine, personal, and intimate. They appreciate the force of empathy, saying the book is soul-wrenching, uplifting, and hopeful. Readers also mention that the author is sensitive, caring, and brings an element of humanity to the patient.

"...accomplished and so promising is the starting point for a sincere, sensitive, and inspiring journey that you will take with him in his memoir to..." Read more

"...It is a beautifully, heartrending, deeply philosophical piece by an accomplished young man who dedicated heart and mind to his work and study in..." Read more

"...I found this book soul wrenching, but also witty, uplifting and hopeful...." Read more

"...This book is, above all, deeply real and human...." Read more

385 customers mention "Honesty"378 positive7 negative

Customers find the book honest, deeply real, and human. They say it's relatable and authentic. Readers also appreciate the vivid imagination and descriptive writing.

"...someone so accomplished and so promising is the starting point for a sincere, sensitive, and inspiring journey that you will take with him in his..." Read more

"...He is very open and honest about himself, his sickness, his relationships, and struggles and triumphs throughout the process of dealing with..." Read more

"...’s writing style, is simple, straightforward, eloquent, and unflinchingly honest – Prologue, Part I and Part II...." Read more

"...This book is refreshing for its honesty and especially for Paul's refusal to give in to platitudes like, "We are going to beat it!" "We..." Read more

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Suzana Teodorovic

Reviewed in the United States on November 10, 2024

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This book is breathtaking, left me speechless. So beautiful but so heartbreaking at the same time…. One of the best books I’ve read so far.

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A Poetic Memoir About Dying, Life, and Meaning

Reviewed in the United States on February 19, 2016

Verified Purchase

Paul Kalanithi was a neurosurgeon, a scientist, and an English literature and a philosophy graduate degree recipient. And at 36 years old, at the cusp of becoming all he worked so hard to achieve, he got the catastrophic diagnosis that he had terminal lung cancer. This sudden devastation concerning someone so accomplished and so promising is the starting point for a sincere, sensitive, and inspiring journey that you will take with him in his memoir to discover the meaning of existence and the acceptance of the inevitability of death.

In his struggle to stave off the ravages of cancer and deal with the uncertainty of when he will “shuffle off this mortal coil,” he grapples with the most fundamental philosophical questions a human mind and heart and soul can imagine. And we are fortunate that he has written so eloquently and intelligently about those struggles in his memoir entitled When Breath Becomes Air.

This is a hard and a glorious autobiography. It is hard because of the harrowing topic, but it is glorious because of what it teaches us as humans lost in a sea of confusion about the whys of living and the limits of life and knowledge—the search for meaning in a meaningless world. You will be captivated and enlightened by this amazing man, and you will be engrossed by the significance of his life and the meaning of his illness and death. The book is slim (229 pages) but extraordinarily powerful, moving, poetic, and philosophical. You will admire Paul Kalanithi for his decency and humanity, and you will lovingly respect his posthumously published last wondrous gift to us. As his wife Lucy says in her epilogue to the book: “He wanted to help people understand death and face their mortality.” With husband Paul’s wisdom and grace in this memoir, you will.

On a personal level, this book was difficult but important as well. That is because I lost my spiritual father and mentor, who was a physician and psychiatrist, to the same cancer as Paul had. He, too, died too young. But he too would talk about facing mortality, about existential surprises, and the meaning of life. His voice accompanied Paul’s throughout my reading of this work. They were both comforting and inspirational. There is also a dear friend, a psychiatrist who helps many with grieving and is and has been my friend for many years and was my grief counselor. She is also like Paul and my spiritual dad in many ways. She was supportively with me in spirit as well when I was reading this beautiful and powerful memoir.

When Breath Becomes Air is one of the most important books I have ever read, ranking up there with Night by Elie Wiesel and Man’s Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. It is that special.

19 people found this helpful

great reading, medically integrating

Reviewed in the United States on August 22, 2024

Verified Purchase

Talks and gives real life testimony to the life and death question we all face and what becomes of it when we have to look it in the eye. Great read

One person found this helpful

Brilliant memoir of a young physician facing a terminal diagnosis

Reviewed in the United States on February 5, 2016

Verified Purchase

This brief memoir is interposed between a foreword by Abraham Verghese, the brilliant author of “Cutting for Stone” and an epilogue by author’s wife, Lucy Kalanithi. It is a beautifully, heartrending, deeply philosophical piece by an accomplished young man who dedicated heart and mind to his work and study in neurosurgery. He discovers that he has terminal lung cancer at the age of 36, just before completing his grueling neurosurgical residency and embarking on the career he has worked so hard to attain. The book is very thoughtful and reflective in nature, especially upon the meaning of life. It made me wonder if the author was truly always so interested in finding the meaning of life, or if only when told of this terminal diagnosis, that reflection back on his life made this search so apparent. As one nears death, what is most important, becomes glaringly more obvious, and Paul Kalanithi describes this so well.

Abraham Verghese speaks in the foreword of how he had met Paul in person several times before his death, but it was not until he read his book that he felt he really knew him. I too, felt like I got to know Paul through this book. He is very open and honest about himself, his sickness, his relationships, and struggles and triumphs throughout the process of dealing with cancer.

I find it interesting that Paul did not always think he wanted to be a physician, but rather thought he might be a writer. He may not have realized his full potential as neurosurgeon and professor, but he surely achieved his goal to be a writer. He has left behind a beautiful book that will be read for many years to come. It will be of great interest to those with life-threatening disease, their family members, and really everyone, because we will all be in those shoes at some point. He has also left behind a wonderful gift of himself to his daughter. She will not remember her time with him, but she will be able to know him through this book and well as through the memories that I’m sure his close relations will share with her. Aside from writing and even delving back into neurosurgery residency at one point, he spent the last years of his life following his diagnosis, building closer bonds with his family, and the love there was overflowing.

Aside from being an important read for anyone facing a life-threatening illness themselves or loving someone who is, I think it is a very important read for all medical professionals. It puts a face behind a patient, who is clearly able to articulate the thoughts and feelings of being a patient in our medical system. It emphasizes and highlights the importance of the physician-patient relationship.

I gave this book 5 stars for it’s thought provoking, beautiful prose, as well as for writing it’s way through a death with utmost dignity. He strengthens his belief systems, forges stronger relationships with family and loved ones, and finds greater meaning in life once he is given this terminal diagnosis.

For discussion questions, please visit book-chatter.com

5 people found this helpful

Mary Alice Melwak

Reviewed in the United States on November 7, 2024

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Beautifully written and a testament to the author and his journey to treat his patients with dignity and empathy. If only there were more humans and physicians like him the medical world would be a better place for all patients and families.

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Marcos Corpa Filho

Sensacional

Reviewed in Brazil on August 18, 2024

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Livro com reflexões valiosas sobre a vida. Para refletirmos sobre a nossa finitude. Vale a pena ler essa historia inspiradora de um medico que inverte seu papel para de um paciente terminal.

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Jon Rivers

A beautiful book on living life, accepting death, regardless of when one is fated to die.

Reviewed in Canada on October 18, 2022

Verified Purchase

5\5 Not a fraction less. As I finished this book tears rolled down both my cheeks. Breathing was hard for the last 40 pages, as I struggle to choke back the conflicting emotions I felt in reading Paul's last words and those his wife Lucy would conclude with. On the one hand I felt heartbroken with sorrow for the fate of this man who would strive so hard to help others live or to ease the agony of those who would die. Yet this book was as heart wrenching as it was beautiful. It was as uplifting as it was sad.

This book deeply touched me on an emotional and what some would call a spiritual level. While I am not spiritual, I cannot deny the spirit of this man, who lived, loved, triumphed and accepted his fate with courage and strength, even as cancer weakened him physiologically.

Paul died very near my own age. I struggle to find meaning in life, especially as I see others die around me every year. I also grapple with my own impending end which could come any moment, future or present. I began to question everything as I've aged. I fear perhaps I have made the wrong choices in life. I question what it is all for. Being an atheist is a blessing and a curse, for it gives life at times a hollow definition. We live to die. Most of us spend the majority of our lives dying, or declining until our last day. This does not have to be a sad thing though. This book has revealed to me that there is another way in which to die. That is, to live... until death.

From the bottom of my heart I am thankful to Paul, for this book, and to Lucy for her epilogue, for her kind words which will touch my own spirit, my core being, until the end. It will forever remind me that our fate may not always be what we want it to be but our lives are what we will make of them. We will all die, some sooner, some later. This is a fact. While we live to die this does not mean we cannot also live to live, to live life appreciatively.

While I do not share the expansive and loving family Paul did and while I feel at times vastly alone in this world, I have learned the deep lessons of this book. I have no one to truly comfort me in my sorrows as I grind through life. This book, these words, are my comfort. Alone we embrace, this philosophy and I. I am not dying such as Paul was. I am merely dying as life would naturally have it, as we all are, until something decides to speed this natural process up, like a cancer or some other malignance. I merely suffer the physiological strife that comes with working on a farm in rural Nova Scotia. I toil so others may not. Someone must till the soil, grow the food, harvest from life to give life. Though I often feel I should be doing more.

My English degree hangs on a wall, a banner of achievement, yet a reminder of failure. I relate to Paul in that, like him, I want to help others. After all, there is no better feeling than having consoled or counselled another. I have often had the dream of using words to ease the pain of suffering. Paul has awakened me to the fallacy of how I see that piece of paper in the negative. Perhaps I will do no more than I have. Some do nothing. Some live and die, forgotten to the winds of time. The important thing is to understand that life is a treasure. It is a thing to be cherished, this consciousness, this awareness, our ability to think and see and question and comprehend. To compel or be compelled is to live. Whether alone or in the company of loved ones, we should hold dear this thing we call life. Find your happiness where you can. Be it within the pages of a book such as this or in the company of others, seek it and embrace it, for a life lived happily is to truly live. Whether short or long, alone or otherwise, we need not despair the eventuality of our end. Smile, my fellows, for were we not alive, we would not know what it is to live.

Thank you Paul. Thank you Lucy. You have both, in death, and life, warmed my heart beyond what other words have elsewhere been able.

Toni-Tere

Impactante

Reviewed in Spain on June 30, 2024

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Libro bien escrito, del principio hasta el final. Sorprendente la última parte ya que toca la fibra y es muy emotivo.

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Julia Marques

Good

Reviewed in the Netherlands on January 2, 2024

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As expected.

Kumar

Must read!

Reviewed in Mexico on January 2, 2021

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This book is one of the best books I have ever read. Profoundly touching, it gives you a different perspective on life.

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