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LoganLib_Kirra
Jan 30, 2020LoganLib_Kirra rated this title 5 out of 5 stars
When Breath Becomes Air is a moving memoir from a young neurosurgeon diagnosed with a terminal cancer. After working tirelessly for a decade training, learning and performing surgeries Paul is almost at the end of his residency when he starts to feel unwell and unlike himself. Reading the signs of his symptoms Paul knows there is definitely something wrong, but he undergoes tests to confirm his fears. The moment he hears the results his life is changed forever, from doctor to patient and confident to scared out of his mind. I was overcome with sadness for this man in only the first few pages as I imagined how difficult his journey during this book was over the two years he spent writing it. Not just the physical pain he went through as his body failed to keep him alive, but the disappointment of his loss, the shame of not being able to live his life the same way and the loss of his future and family. I found this book fascinating, though, not just because it was a first-hand account of his descent into his illness but also for the medical stories of his own patients and practices. It was a book I enjoyed reading from start to finish and I do believe it's one you won't quickly forget.