Two years following the death of its author, neurosurgeon Paul Kalanithi, When Breath Becomes Air was posthumously published to global acclaim, working as both a candid portrait of the symptoms and treatment of cancer and as a meditative essay on what it is to prepare for death. As Being Mortal’s Atul Guwande observed, ‘the dying are the ones who have the most to teach us about life.’ As our Non-Fiction Book of the Month for January, we’re honoured to be able to present Kalanithi’s introduction to this remarkable memoir, an extract deeply affecting in itself.
Think brain surgery and you think calm competence, clinical precision. Think again. Top neurosurgeon Henry Marsh sheds light on the chaos, confusion and self-doubt of life inside the operating theatre.
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