When breath becomes air / Paul Kalanithi ; foreword by Abraham Verghese NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY THE WASHINGTON POST • THE NEW YORK TIMES • NPR We have all heard of or experienced a situation where a doctor has ignored the concerns of a patient and refused thorough testing. That is what happened to 35 year old Paul Kalanithi despite the fact that he was a physician himself, in training to be a neurosurgeon and possessing several other degrees as well. He saw a doctor because with his weight loss and severe back pain, he suspected that he had cancer. An x-ray would not show abnormalities as well as an MRI, but an x-ray is what the doctor insisted upon. This test was normal. Continuing to be in discomfort, Kalanithi took painkillers in order to function and a few weeks later he developed extreme chest pain. Tests now showed that his lungs were riddled with tumors and these had spread to other areas of his body. He now became a patient. This book is very, very good and is intelligently written. It’s remarkable in the way it shows the journey of a physician through education, training and treatment of patients, and a patient’s journey through diagnosis, receiving treatment and finally having to make decisions for end-of-life care. The most poignant sections of the book are when the author had to re-assess the goals he had in life and realize his life objectives have changed. He was fortunate throughout to have the support of his wife, also a physician, and his family. For a smaller book, it has lots to think about. Booklist review: “Can life remain full and rewarding even while one is living under a death sentence? This is the question now-deceased neurosurgeon Kalanithi asked himself after receiving a late-stage lung cancer diagnosis. Newly married and almost ready to complete his residency, at 34 Kalanithi was faced with a momentous decision: Should he continue with a promising medical career, or fall back on his first love of writing while taking care of his health? Fortunately for the readers of this moving memoir, he decided to do both. Kalanithi describes his life-changing decision to set aside the pursuit of a doctorate in literature in favor of attending medical school and then recounts the discovery and progress of his illness, along with the inevitable upheaval in his personal life. A precious highlight here is the heartrending epilogue penned by his wife, Lucy, following Kalanithi's passing shortly after she became pregnant. This eloquent, heartfelt meditation on the choices that make life worth living, even as death looms, will prompt readers to contemplate their own values and mortality.”

Caflowerluver - the book has romance, but also some bitter anti-romance. One event I'm thinking of is when the group goes to the Plaza Hotel to drink. There is a confrontation where Gatsby tells Tom that Daisy loves him and not Tom, her husband. After Tom mentions Gatsby's illegal business activities in order to discredit him, Gatsby tries to defend himself to Daisy, "But with every word she was drawing further and further into herself, so he gave that up and only the dead dream fought on as the afternoon slipped away, trying to touch what was no longer tangible, struggling unhappily, undespairingly, toward that lost voice across the room." Ironically, at the same time that the marriage is being damaged, there is a wedding being celebrated in the hotel just below them.

Nickel - I haven't read any other J.K. Rowling's books except for Harry Potter, but you might enjoy her Cormoran Strike series. The four books in the series are rated fairly highly on Goodreads (goodreads.com), especially the third title - Career of Evil. The other titles are The Cuckoo's Calling, The Silkworm and Lethal White. Casual Vacancy is rated lower than any of these. I haven't read Harry Potter and the Cursed Child either, which I believe is published as a play. Incidentally, Goodreads is a wonderful site for book ratings and for book discussions. I find it very entertaining to read comments of other readers about books that I have read.

Thanks. DH Said he really enjoyed the book. I bought it after reading your recomendation. It is next on my list to read.