Reviews

Twelve Breaths a Minute: End of Life Essays by Karen Wolk Feinstein, Lee Gutkind, Francine Prose

pamiverson's review against another edition

4.0

Essays by medical professionals, family members, and others dealing with end-of-life issues. Overwhelmingly argues for natural deaths, that heroic measure do not prolong the kind of life most people would want. Some were very powerful, e.g., an intern asked to remove life support from her mentor's mother and realizing she doesn't know what to do, a mother authorizing the harvesting of her daughter's organs and wondering if she is really dead when it happens. Taken as a whole, definitely thought-provoking.

silodear's review against another edition

4.0

A collection of vignettes about experiences with death and loss, this book is an excellent and accessible tool for folks interested in palliative care or end of life work. This book was thoughtful and engaging; the stories were varied enough that I could sit down and read several at a time (a feat for me, what with my aversion to the short story format). The authors in this collection don't appear to be very culturally diverse -- most were older Jewish folks -- but, again, the stories were each unique from one another and very thoughtful.