The End of Your Life Book Club - Will Schwalbe

Written by Will Schwalbe
Format: MP3

Written by: Will Schwalbe
Narrated by: Jeff Harding
Length: 9 hrs and 40 mins

Format: Unabridged

Release Date:10-02-12
Publisher’s 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.

Will and Mary Anne share their hopes and concerns with each other - and rediscover their lives - through their favorite books. When they read, they aren’t a sick person and a well person, but a mother and a son taking a journey together. The result is a profoundly moving tale of loss that is also a joyful, and often humorous, celebration of life: Will’s love letter to his mother, and theirs to the printed page.
What the Critics Say

“With a refreshing forthrightness, and an excellent list of books included, this is an astonishing, pertinent, and wonderfully welcome work.” (Publishers Weekly, starred review)

“A wonderful book about wonderful books and mothers and sons and the enduring braid between them. Like the printed volumes it celebrates, this story will stay with you long after the last page.” (Mitch Albom, author of Tuesdays with Morrie and The Time Keeper)

“Will Schwalbe’s lyrical tribute to a life well-lived and a death graced with love and literature is a precious gift bestowed on all of us. What a unique and beautiful book this is, and how privileged we are to have it.” (Sherwin B. Nuland, author of The Art of Aging and How We Die)
“A good book, but not really for me.”

At first I thought I’d made a big mistake choosing this book, and for a while I was tempted to return it. I chose it because I am always struggling to think of my next book to download. You would think, with so many amazing books in the World, that I would have a long list of titles waiting patiently to be read. But for some reason this isn’t the case. I rarely get a book recommended to me and often, when I do, I don’t really like it. I think this is a combination of the fact that I don’t mix with particularly bookish people and I have a particular, perhaps narrow, taste in books. For example, I really like non-fiction and especially popular science.
So I picked this book because I want to venture more into fiction, and I hoped that it would give me lots of great tips for novels to read. Unfortunately, it didn’t.
This is an autobiographical book by an American publisher whose mother is dying of pancreatic cancer. He and his mother are both avid readers, and they turn their informal chats about their reading into a more formal arrangement whereby they read the same books and discuss them. Of course, it is also about the man’s love for, and close relationship with, his dying mother, who lived a busy and unselfish life helping people in war-torn countries around the World.
Although, if I could live my life over again, I probably wouldn’t choose this book second time around, there were definitely some good things about it. The writer has a good engaging style and his reflections on life, dying and death were interesting enough to make me want to carry on listening to the end. For example, he was sitting beside her deathbed and I liked that fact that he admitted that he found this tedious, when I was expecting him to describe it as deeply intense and emotional.
On the negative side, the book is a bit claustrophobic. It is almost exclusively about the man and his mother. Even though he is an interesting man and she was a brave philanthropist, the constant chemotherapy, the gradual deterioration, her physical frailty, their chats, all feel like you are trapped in a hospital room with the 2 of them for 2 years. You would hope that the escape from this would be the discussion of books, but very few, if any, of the books discussed made me think, ‘ooh, that sounds interesting, I must get that one’. This may be because I am shallow, or perhaps because I have different tastes to the author and his Mom. For example, they both appreciate poetry and pottery, and these things play no part whatsoever in my life.
In short, this book is very well-written, but just isn’t really for me. Other people might love it. If you think you might be one of those people, I hope I haven’t put you off!
“Loved this book”

Loved this book. Of course the subject of illness is difficult but I loved how this family dealt with illness, treatments and end of life. Good review of so many books that you may have read or meant to read. One of my year’s favorite books.

Santa Cruz, CA, United States
10-13-12

Overall

Performance

Story

“Exquisite”

This is a beautifully written book and a difficult subject. This is not a sad book instead it is about a family of voracious readers who have a love of books and the story, message within. Will Schwalbe write about his day with his mother, Mary Ann Schwalbe, when he accompanies her for her chemotherapy treatment. Mary Ann had organized this in such a way she got to spend quality time with each of her children and her daughter-in-law. It becomes clear that she discussed books with each of her children and grandchildren. The book will provide you with a great reading list of books. When they discussed books I had read I was delighted to find I got a different insight into the book. The range of books read went from serious to the lighthearted comedy. The parents love of music came through in the story also. Mary Ann must have been a exceptional woman and very intelligent, I wish I had been given the privilege to know her. The way Schwalbe wrote the book I do feel as if I was part of her life for a time. This is book that will stay with you for a long time. This is a must read book for those who love to read.
“If you’re a book lover you must listen to this one”

Not just because it’s beautifully written, or because it is warm, honest, or because as some fellow listener said: “it gives you a glimpse into the life of an extraordinary human being” or not even for the amazing list of great books it provides. Ii’s all that and much more, it’s because is like listening to someone who speaks your same language. The language of books.
The narration is excellent.
It’s been a privilege to listen to this book.

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Creation Date:	Tue, 03 Jun 2014 06:41:55 -0400
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