When Breath Becomes Air Hardcover – Deckle Edge, 1 January 1900

‘At the touch of love, everyone becomes a poet’, it is said. But one cannot say the same about Death. When Death arrives calling, not everyone stays brave or becomes a philosopher. Not all of us remain the proud humans that we are during our lifetimes, but go begging for another lease of life, no matter however brief that might be. Very few of us have the courage and composure to meet Death face-to-face, contemplate their life so far, take stock of their purpose and progress, and then, finally, do something that would fill them with the satisfaction of leaving behind something worthwhile, something that could set apart their sojourn on this planet from the billions of others. Paul Kalanithi’s was, fortunately or unfortunately, one such life that acquired a glowing purpose and meaning, sadly more during his final phase of life.Paul Kalanithi was the second of three sons of an Indian couple settled in America. He had everything going for him. A comfortable life with family, marrying the love of his life, pursuing a career as special and as advanced as neurosurgery, reputation that could have landed him a plump career as soon as his training ended. But he also had something else too – lung cancer of an advanced stage. All his plans for the future suddenly vanished like mirage. With a life now cut short due to illness, Paul launched deeply into questions of existential nature, questions he had felt even while he was riding the crest of the tide.This book is the answer to his questions about the meaning and purpose of human life. And, what an eloquent and poetic answer this has turned out to be! Published posthumously, this memoir recounts Paul’s early life in detail, telling us about what led to his decision to pursue a career in neuroscience, his early days as a resident surgeon and his ascent to glory. Then come the details of his illness, the various stages of cure that were tried and his frantic, determined quest to find the meaning for his life, whatever little was left of it. His wife Lucy’s epilogue is as fitting an end to the book as it could have been – beautiful, full of love and written more in a matter of fact manner than in a mawkish tone, just the same way in which Paul had written the whole book.Life is a continuum and Death is a part of it, whether we like it or not. Death is in fact the only absolute certainty in the lives of everything, from the tiny sapling to the mightiest of stars. Just like the eyes ignore the nose that is in front of them, in order to give us an unhindered view of the world, our minds push that ineluctable reality behind so that we can plot our plans for decades until, of course, Death arrives calling, putting to waste our best-laid plans. The more we contemplate the meaning of our lives, the more we acknowledge what awaits us all in the end, and the more we chart the course of our lives accordingly, the easier it becomes for us to leave our mortal shells behind with dignity. Just the way Paul did.Going through the book, I was often reminded of Viktor Frankl’s ‘Meaning Triangle’. According to him, a human being can add meaning to his/her life in one of these three ways – by creating something beautiful – a work of art, literature or something else similar, by being a beacon of love, filling the lives of others with love and joyful experiences or, finally, by showing a courageous attitude towards the travails that Life places on one’s path. According to me, Paul has done all the three and has really added a glowing meaning to his beautiful life, no matter however short it had been.Done reading, I am leaving this book on my shelf, nestled between Viktor Frankl’s magnum opus ‘Man’s Search for Meaning’ and Anne Frank’s ‘The Diary of A Young Girl’, because I really feel that this book deserves its place up there!

One of the best memoirs I have ever read. Truly gripping, deeply riveting, poignant, heartbreaking and daring in everyway .The book is a poignant tale about the sojourn stay on earth of an extra ordinary human being. The book is split in to two parts. In first part, the author describes about his childhood days growing up in kingsman Arizona, his love for books & how they helped him in making the choices that shaped his life.He also details about some of the choices that he has made in life along with reason and judgement.He explains about how from an early age, he has aroused a keen interest in books and how his mother who was influential in instilling in him his love for books & literature from an early age. He has made books his closest confidants, finely ground lenses providing new views of the world.His mothers quest to provide better education for her kids combined with the excellence standards set by his father along with his love for literature, drove his spirits and landed him with a degree in english @ Stanford. The author also narrates how his course at Stanford helped him seek a deeper understanding of a life and identify what makes life meaningful.His search for identifying purpose & meaning to life dawned him with the revelation that only a physician could truly understand the physiological-spiritual man. which led him to choose medicine as his profession. & neurosurgery as his specialization. He beautifully unveils his choice of specialization and substantiates it with a barrage of facts/information.He elucidates that he was compelled for neurosurgery because of it unforgiving call to perfection.which required moral,emotional, mental and physical excellence. The duties of the neurosurgeons and the enormous physical,emotional,mental & moral responsibilities that they need to shoulder while treating the patients has been explained in detail.since brain being the most important part of the human body that could give rise to an organism capable of creating an identity to the human life & finding meaning in the world,Neurosurgeons are considered as polymaths who strode into the densest thickest of emotional,scientific and spiritual problems and found or carved ways out.As individuals, during our lifetime we tend to dwell more on ephemeral stuffs and wrestle hard to create an identity for ourselves. But the author's pursuit to create an identity for another individual by being the best version of himself via neurosurgery is highly commendable.In the second part of the book, the author details about how life takes a complete shift after being diagnosed with cancer. He elucidates about the hardships being faced and how he was determined to cease not until death. Its truly heart wrenching to see how at times,an arduous feat becomes baseless and pointless when faced with destiny. Its quite evident from the book that the author was a man who possessed an unimpeachable rectitude and integrity.His vision to lead a purposeful & meaningful life is very evident from the beginning.The epilogue by his wife at the end of this book is worth to be mentioned.Wonderfully written.The author has incorporated a judicious use of lyric quotations advances to a striking level of exaltation and triumph. Filled with admiration and awe not just for the writing but for the literature scholarship and for the determination and dedication that made it possible during the testing of times. This is truly a masterpiece and the author will be extant in the memories of the readers for generations to come. The book is bound to influence the reader profoundly.

“ WHEN BREATHE BECOMES air “ was listed one of the bestseller autobiographical of NYT . The story is about resident neurosurgeon at Stanford , PAUL KALANTHI . PAUL after doing MA in English literature from Stanford earned Mphil in history and philosophy of science from Cambridge and went on to graduate in medicine from Yale followed by becoming a resident at Standford . An adventurous person, who lived life full of energy , is unfortunately detected with PI3K mutation . Although novel was an easy flow unlike the Foreword & PROLOGUE , however , reading through 200 odd pages rattlled me because of its resemblance of my memory of losing my younger brother last year. Powerlessness like slipping of sand from tight fist!

An awesome read about death, it’s inevitability, and a story of a man who was not afraid to live even when faced with the certainty of death. Amazing! (Grab some tissues). And Paul, reading you felt like you were right next to me. You are gone, but a part of you remains here and what a gift this is for all of us.

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.

Felt super emotional and sad after reading this one. I must say I have a new outlook towards life after reading this one. Must read at least once

"When Breath Becomes Air" is a profoundly moving exploration of life, death, and the human spirit that left an indelible impact on me. Written by the late Dr. Paul Kalanithi, a neurosurgeon diagnosed with terminal cancer, the book offers a poignant reflection on mortality and the pursuit of meaning.Kalanithi's eloquent prose beautifully captures the essence of his journey, navigating the realms of medicine, philosophy, and literature. The narrative weaves between his experiences as a doctor and a patient, creating a powerful narrative that is both intellectually stimulating and emotionally resonant.As he grapples with his own mortality, Kalanithi invites readers to contemplate the universal questions of existence. The book delves into the fragility of life, the significance of our choices, and the search for purpose in the face of inevitable death.The raw honesty and vulnerability displayed by the author make "When Breath Becomes Air" a profoundly human story. It transcends the confines of a traditional memoir, touching on themes that resonate universally. Kalanithi's introspective exploration of love, identity, and the meaning of a life well-lived leaves an enduring impact, prompting readers to reflect on their own lives and values.In essence, "When Breath Becomes Air" is not just a book; it's a testament to the beauty and fragility of the human experience. It is a poignant reminder that in confronting mortality, we find the essence of what it truly means to live

As expected.