How We Die: Reflections on Life's Final Chapter by Sherwin B. Nuland

Synopsis

Attempting to demythologize the process of dying, Nuland explores how we shall die, each of us in a way that will be unique. Through particular stories of dying--of patients, and of his own family--he examines the seven most common roads to death: old age, cancer, AIDS, Alzheimer's, accidents, heart disease, and strokes, revealing the facets of death's multiplicity.

"It's impossible to read How We Die without realizing how earnestly we have avoided this most unavoidable of subjects, how we have protected ourselves by building a cultural wall of myths and lies. I don't know of any writer or scientist who has shown us the face of death as clearly, honestly and compassionately as Sherwin Nuland does here."--James Gleick

Annotation

Describes the mechanisms of cancer/ heart attack/stroke/AIDS/Alzheimer's/etc.

Publishers Weekly

The 1994 NBA nonfiction winner, Yale physician Nuland's study of the clinical, biological and emotional details of dying was a 14-week PW bestseller. (Jan.)

Biography

A clinical professor of surgery at Yale University, Sherwin B. Nuland is the author of numerous books including How We Die: Reflections on Life’s Final Chapter, which won the National Book Award; Lost in America: A Journey with My Father; Maimonides; and Leonardo da Vinci. He lives in Hamden, Connecticut.