The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Vintage International) (Vintage International)
by Jean-Dominique Bauby
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Book Summary Information
Author: Jean-Dominique BaubyEdition: Paperback
Published: 2007-11-20
ISBN: 0007790155
Number of pages: 144
Publisher: Vintage
Book Reviews of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Vintage International) (Vintage International)
Book Review: "bedridden travel notes"
Summary: 4 Stars
Jean-Dominique Bauby had it made, or so he thought. At age 43 he was the editor of Elle magazine, cynical, and a stranger to failure. Then he had a massive stroke that left him in a coma for three weeks. When he awoke, he suffered from a rare neurological disorder called "locked in syndrome." He could hear a little and his brain worked fine, but he was totally paralyzed and couldn't speak. He could blink with his left eye. With his one good eye Bauby dictated this remarkable memoir, letter by letter, to his amanuensis. A speech therapist devised a chart with the letters of the alphabet arranged by frequency of use. As she spoke the letters Bauby would blink for the letter he wanted. Though locked in the heavy "diving bell" of his useless body, Bauby's imagination soared as playfully as "the butterflies that flutter inside my head."
Bauby's book consists of what he calls his "bedridden travel notes." He lost sixty-six pounds in twenty weeks. When a fly landed on his nose, he wiggled his nose to no avail, only to conclude that "Olympic wrestling is child's play compared to this." Taking a bath sometimes brought elation and at other times depression. Sundays were the worst, when hospital staff and visitors were at a minimum. Bauby relates some of his dreams, memories like a trip to Lourdes and the last time that he saw his father, and cherished visits from his daughter Celeste, age eight, and son Theophile, age ten. His description of their visit to the beach on Father's Day is wrenching: "Grief surges over me. . . There are no words to express it. My condition is monstrous, iniquitous, revolting, horrible. Suddenly I can take no more. Tears well and my throat emits a hoarse rattle that startles Theophile. Don't be scared, little man. I love you."
Bauby's public updates, and eventually this book, belied the rumors swirling around Paris that the famous editor was "only a vegetable." Mail poured in to him and he hoarded the letters like little treasures. In 2007 a film by the same title told his story, earning four Academy Award nominations. Bauby died in 1997 just days after the publication of his book.
Summary of The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (Vintage International) (Vintage International)
We've all got our idiosyncrasies when it comes to writing--a special chair we have to sit in, a certain kind of yellow paper we absolutely must use. To create this tremendously affecting memoir, Jean-Dominique Bauby used the only tool available to him--his left eye--with which he blinked out its short chapters, letter by letter. Two years ago, Bauby, then the 43-year-old editor-in-chief of Elle France, suffered a rare stroke to the brain stem; only his left eye and brain escaped damage. Rather than accept his "locked in" situation as a kind of death, Bauby ignited a fire of the imagination under himself and lived his last days--he died two days after the French publication of this slim volume--spiritually unfettered. In these pages Bauby journeys to exotic places he has and has not been, serving himself delectable gourmet meals along the way (surprise: everything's ripe and nothing burns). In the simplest of terms he describes how it feels to see reflected in a window "the head of a man who seemed to have emerged from a vat of formaldehyde."In December 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby, the 43-year-old editor of French Elle, suffered a massive stroke that left him permanently paralyzed, a victim of “locked in syndrome.” Once known for his gregariousness and wit, Bauby now finds himself imprisoned in an inert body, able to communicate only by blinking his left eye. The miracle is that in doing so he was able to compose this stunningly eloquent memoir.
In a voice that is by turns wistful and mischievous, angry and sardonic, Bauby gives us a celebration of the liberating power of consciousness: what it is like to spend a day with his children, to imagine lying in bed beside his wife, to conjure up the flavor of delectable meals even as he is fed through at tube. Most of all, this triumphant book lets us witness an indomitable spirit and share in the pure joy of its own survival.
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