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The Diving Bell and The Butterfly: Summary and book reviews of The Diving Bell and The Butterfly by Jean-Dominique Bauby, plus links to an excerpt from The Diving Bell and The Butterfly and a biography of Jean-Dominique Bauby.
The Diving Bell and The Butterfly A Memoir of Life in Death
by
Jean-Dominique Bauby
Hardcover: May 1997,
144 pages.
Paperback: Jun 1998,
144 pages.
In 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby was the editor-in-chief of French Elle,
the father of two young children, a 44-year-old man known and loved for his wit, his
style, and his impassioned approach to life. By the end of the year he was also the victim
of a rare kind of stroke to the brainstem. After 20 days in a coma, Bauby awoke into a
body which had all but stopped working: only his left eye functioned, allowing him to see
and, by blinking it, to make clear that his mind was unimpaired. Almost miraculously, he
was soon able to express himself in the richest detail: dictating a word at a time,
blinking to select each letter as the alphabet was recited to him slowly, over and over
again. In the same way, he was able eventually to compose this extraordinary book.
By turns wistful, mischievous, angry, and witty, Bauby bears witness to his determination
to live as fully in his mind as he had been able to do in his body. He explains the joy,
and deep sadness, of seeing his children and of hearing his aged father's voice on the
phone. In magical sequences, he imagines traveling to other places and times and of lying
next to the woman he loves. Fed only intravenously, he imagines preparing and tasting the
full flavor of delectable dishes. Again and again he returns to an "inexhaustible
reservoir of sensations," keeping in touch with himself and the life around him.
Jean-Dominique Bauby died two days after the French publication of The Diving Bell and
the Butterfly.
This book is a lasting testament to his life.
Book Reviews
Edmund White
Was it Hemingway who defined grace under pressure? No matter who said it, the
words have never been more pertinent than in speaking of this heroic book, dictated
against the worst imaginable adversities. Although every word cost the author a superhuman
effort, the prose is not sickbed telegraphese but rather as light as the sprightliest
humor, as pungent as the taste of cooking apricots, as vigorous as the step of a young man
setting out on a first date. Read this book and fall back in love with life.
Edmund White
Was it Hemingway who defined grace under pressure? No matter who said it, the
words have never been more pertinent than in speaking of this heroic book, dictated
against the worst imaginable adversities. Although every word cost the author a superhuman
effort, the prose is not sickbed telegraphese but rather as light as the sprightliest
humor, as pungent as the taste of cooking apricots, as vigorous as the step of a young man
setting out on a first date. Read this book and fall back in love with life.
Sherwin B. Nuland, M.D.
To read this most extraordinary of narratives is to discover the luminosity within a
courageous man's mind. Locked into his own world but not locked out of ours, [Jean-Dominique
Bauby] explores images, memories and an entire landscape of fantasy and love. His
incomparable final gift to us is a heartbreaking and yet glorious testament to the
wrenching beauty of the human spirit.
Andrew Weil
As riveting as a narrative from an explorer of deep space, this communication from a
mind imprisoned in an unresponsive body is remarkable for its utter lack of self-pity or
sentimentality. Though 'locked in' the author's consciousness freely roams through worlds
of memory, fantasy, sense, impression, and contemplation of the human condition. An
unforgettable read.
Sherwin B. Nuland, M.D.
To read this most extraordinary of narratives is to discover the luminosity within a
courageous man's mind. Locked into his own world but not locked out of ours, [Jean-Dominique
Bauby] explores images, memories and an entire landscape of fantasy and love. His
incomparable final gift to us is a heartbreaking and yet glorious testament to the
wrenching beauty of the human spirit.
Elie Wiesel
This heartbreaking story by a uniquely gifted writer is about transforming pain into
creativity, human despair into literary miracle.
Andrew Weil
As riveting as a narrative from an explorer of deep space, this communication from a
mind imprisoned in an unresponsive body is remarkable for its utter lack of self-pity or
sentimentality. Though 'locked in' the author's consciousness freely roams through worlds
of memory, fantasy, sense, impression, and contemplation of the human condition. An
unforgettable read.
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The Diving Bell and The Butterfly
Edmund White
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