When Breath Becomes Air - after the meeting

In August, I read and reviewed When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalinithi back in August. You can read my review here. This was a book I only liked, but I was anxious for the book club discussion which I correctly expected to be excellent.

My community book club had a very small turnout for the discussion of “When Breath Becomes Air” by Paul Kalanithi. This memoir was penned by a physician who received a diagnosis of Stage IV lung cancer at the age of 36. Did people not want to read a book about death and end-of-life decisions? Did people not want to discuss it? Those in attendance were all in agreement that the book wasn’t really a downer. Of the six members attending, two liked the book and 4 loved the book. All agreed that this is a book they could easily recommend to others. 

Dr. Paul Kalanithi was determined to live every moment of his life until he wasn’t living any longer. Everyone determined that the theme of the book was living a purposeful life. Further discussion not only involved determining what Kalanithi’s purpose was and what made his life meaningful, but purpose and meaning in general. How does one live a purposeful life? And how might they, the readers, make meaning out of their lives? Interestingly, Kalanithi always wanted to be a writer. Was this the book he wanted to write?

The group talked about the road that brought Kalanithi to his calling as a neurosurgeon. In his case, it truly was a calling. The facilitator of the discussion brought information about Kalanithi’s education that wasn’t included in his end-of-life memoir.  Kalanithi spent most of his life trying to figure out relationships. That was definitely a help for him in his chosen career and towards the end of his life. Other matters pondered were whether fears of terminal illness are larger than death itself and what place does suffering have both in life and towards death. No conclusions were reached but that was a very thought-provoking time during the meeting.

“When Breath Becomes Air” was on several best sellers lists. It was on the NY Times bestsellers list for over a year. Kalanithi has achieved prominence as a writer. He has reached so many people with his bestselling memoir. One member wondered if he would have reached such prominence as a neurosurgeon. Deliberating that was the conclusion to what all agreed was a very successful, stimulating  meeting.