Mortality

· Atlantic Books Ltd
4.7
60 reviews
eBook
128
Pages
Eligible
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About this eBook

The world's greatest contrarian confronts his own death in this brave and unforgettable book.
During the American book tour for his memoir, Hitch-22, Christopher Hitchens collapsed in his hotel room with excruciating pain in his chest. As he would later write in the first of a series of deeply moving Vanity Fair pieces, he was being deported 'from the country of the well across the stark frontier that marks off the land of malady.' Over the next year he experienced the full force of modern cancer treatment.

Mortality
is at once an unsparingly honest account of the ravages of his disease, an examination of cancer etiquette, and the coda to a lifetime of fierce debate and peerless prose. In this moving personal account of illness, Hitchens confronts his own death - and he is combative and dignified, eloquent and witty to the very last.

Ratings and reviews

4.7
60 reviews
Katherine Strong
28 June 2014
It's going to happen to us all and the more often brave souls take up the challenge of breaking the taboos about talking about death the better we'll be at dealing with the inevitable. Anyone who finds thinking about death difficult should read this. It's unflinching and raw at times, but massively life affirming, empowering, will serve to desensitise and help with clarifying your own thoughts on death. It goes without saying that anyone already a fan of writing which takes the bull by the horns will already be familiar with Hitchens and will have already read this!
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Steven Maroufkhani
21 January 2014
I heard Hitch say in an interview that his inspiration for this book came from reading an article in the paper that referred to him as, "The late Christopher Hitchens." I thought that was fascinating. Not to mention he wrote it while in the midst of an unrelenting battle for his life.. I enjoyed this book from beginning to end. Hitchens had a unique gift in that he was able to maintain originality in a world dominated by copycats & status quos. He & his many talents are/will be missed.
2 people found this review helpful
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Market McClelland
14 October 2013
Hitchen's faces his own mortality with his usual logic, not swaying from his humanist atheist outlook. Eloquently handles the calls for him to recant with powerful reasoning.
1 person found this review helpful
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About the author

Christopher Hitchens (1949-2011) was a contributing editor to Vanity Fair and a columnist for Slate. He was the author of numerous books, including works on Thomas Jefferson, George Orwell, Mother Teresa, Henry Kissinger and Bill and Hillary Clinton, as well as his international bestseller and National Book Award nominee, god Is Not Great. His memoir, Hitch-22, was nominated for the Orwell Prize and was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award.

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