When breath becomes air

Sunday Times Bestseller

"A vital book about death. Inspiring and fascinating. Required reading for the living." - Nigella Lawson

At the age of 36, and about to complete his decade-long training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, the next he was a patient fighting for his life.

When Breath Becomes Air documents Kalanithi's transformation from a medical student wondering what makes life virtuous and meaningful, to a neurosurgeon working at the core of human identity—the brain—and finally to a patient and new father.

What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when life is cut catastrophically short? What does it mean to have a child while your own life is fading away? Paul Kalanithi died while working on this deeply moving book, but his words live on as a guide for us all. When Breath Becomes Air is a life-affirming meditation on the face of our mortality and on the doctor-patient relationship, from a gifted writer who has achieved both.
2017 Wellcome Book Prize Shortlist

Sunday Times Bestseller

"A vital book about death. Inspiring and fascinating. Required reading for the living." - Nigella Lawson

At the age of 36, about to complete a decade of training as a neurosurgeon, Paul Kalanithi was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. One day he was a doctor treating the dying, the next he was a patient fighting for his life. When Breath Becomes Air chronicles Kalanithi's transformation from a medical student wondering what makes life virtuous and meaningful, to a neurosurgeon working at the core of human identity—the brain—and finally to a patient and new father. What makes life worth living in the face of death? What do you do when life is catastrophically cut short? What does it mean to have a child as your own life fades away? Paul Kalanithi died while working on this profoundly moving book, yet his words live on as a guide for us all. When Breath Becomes Air is a life-affirming meditation on the face of our own mortality and on the relationship between doctor and patient, from a gifted writer who became both.
Shortlisted for the Wellcome Book Prize 2017