when breath becomes air

this book is beautiful because paul kalanithi's life was beautiful.  a renowned and highly successful neurosurgeon, paul went from being on the doctor side of healthcare to the side of the patient as a young, married 36 year-old suddenly diagnosed with lung cancer.

why i can recommend this memoir so highly is because it is all about living.  it is rich with an uncommon empathy that is able to slice well beyond knowlege, through suffering and into eternal things to reveal pure gold.  it is uplifting, even poetic because of paul's rich grounding in and love of literature.

the title alone gave me pause.  "yes", i thought, "when does breath become air and air become breath?"

it avoids cliches and over-sentimentality while chronicling the life of a man driven to understand the science of our minds and brains who was truly devoted to living with meaning and saw all of his patients as people first and foremost.

his words are like having a conversation where he invites you to reflect on your own life and borrow his courage.  his integrated language development, starting as a ten year-old who read voraciously, translates into a dialogue for anyone alive who wants to live even more fully.