A review by whatannikareads
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective sad medium-paced

4.0

super obvious observation, but you could tell paul was really intelligent and thoughtful from his writing alone. it's kinda crazy that he wrote this in the later stages of his cancer, when it's a struggle just to breathe, let alone write a memoir. it tickled the part of my brain that is interested in science and medicine, and i appreciate that this memoir merged those two interests. i learned a lot about neuroscience and the brutal work life of neurosurgeons. and i admire that paul was so passionate about writing and literature. i think because of how intelligent he is, he lost me at some parts that got more technical and descriptive. i think he occasionally strayed from his central point and went on tangents. but the epilogue made me cry hard and feel existential. i think memoirs like this are really thought-provoking and i'd like to dive into other works in this vein.
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