The End of Your Life Book Club

Author: Will Schwalbe
Published: 2012
Genre: Non-fiction
Rating: 4.5

Summary
“What are you reading?”

That’s the question Will Schwalbe asks his mother, Mary Anne, as they sit in the waiting room of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. In 2007, Mary Anne returned from a humanitarian trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan suffering from what her doctors believed was a rare type of hepatitis. Months later she was diagnosed with a form of advanced pancreatic cancer, which is almost always fatal, often in six months or less.

This is the inspiring true story of a son and his mother, who start a “book club” that brings them together as her life comes to a close. Over the next two years, Will and Mary Anne carry on conversations that are both wide-ranging and deeply personal, prompted by an eclectic array of books and a shared passion for reading. Their list jumps from classic to popular, from poetry to mysteries, from fantastic to spiritual. The issues they discuss include questions of faith and courage as well as everyday topics such as expressing gratitude and learning to listen. Throughout, they are constantly reminded of the power of books to comfort us, astonish us, teach us, and tell us what we need to do with our lives and in the world. Reading isn’t the opposite of doing; it’s the opposite of dying.
Review
A compelling, thought-provoking memoir of the on-going book-reading discussions between the author and his mother in the last two years of her life. The author beautifully describes his mother's personality and characteristics by sharing experiences and stories. I finished the book feeling as though I was better for having vicariously known her.

Notes
This book was close to life-changing for me. It lead me to ponder what type of legacy I want to leave behind when I die? And--unfortunately--it also left me with a whole list of books to add to my "to read" list....