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Feb 07, 2017 | ISBN 9781101973646 Buy
Feb 02, 2016 | ISBN 9781101875285 Buy
Feb 02, 2016 | ISBN 9781101875292 Buy
Feb 02, 2016 | 366 Minutes Buy
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Feb 07, 2017 | ISBN 9781101973646
Feb 02, 2016 | ISBN 9781101875285
Feb 02, 2016 | ISBN 9781101875292
Feb 02, 2016 | ISBN 9780399566127
366 Minutes
In an eloquent, deeply personal and moving book, beloved NPR radio host Diane Rehm speaks about the death of her husband of fifty-four years—and of her struggle to reconstruct her life without him.John Rehm was 74 when he was diagnosed with Parkinson’s. Nine years later, he passed away, having made the difficult choice to end his extended illness by refusing to eat, drink, or accept medication. This process transformed Diane into an advocate for increased conversation end-of-life care and the right to die on one’s own terms, as well as a brave and sympathetic voice for anyone who must learn how to live again after bereavement.
In a deeply personal and moving book, the beloved NPR radio host speaks out about the long drawn-out death (from Parkinson’s) of her husband of fifty-four years, and of her struggle to reconstruct her life without him. With John gone, Diane was indeed “on her own,” coping with the inevitable practical issues and, more important, with the profoundly emotional ones. What to do, how to react, reaching out again into the world—struggling to create a new reality for herself while clinging to memories of the past. Her focus is on her own roller-coaster experiences, but she has also solicited the moving stories of such recently widowed friends as Roger Mudd and Susan Stamberg, which work to expose the reader to a remarkable range of reactions to the death of a spouse. John’s unnecessarily extended death—he begged to be helped to die—culminated in his taking matters into his own hands, simply refusing to take water, food, and medication. His heroic actions spurred Diane into becoming a kind of poster person for the “right to die” movement that is all too slowly taking shape in our country. With the brave determination that has characterized her whole life, she is finding a meaningful new way to contribute to the world. Her book—as practical as it is inspiring—will be a help and a comfort to the recently bereaved, and a beacon of hope about the possibilities that remain to us as we deal with our own approaching mortality.
Diane Rehm hosted The Diane Rehm Show, distributed by NPR, from 1979 to 2016, when it had a listening audience of nearly three million. She now hosts the podcast On MyMind and The Diane Rehm Book Club for WAMU/NPR. She lives in Washington, D.C. www.dianerehm.org
“Clear, moving and completely honest. . . . Diane Rehm has again found her voice, and, as she has always done, she speaks passionately and courageously about issues that concern us all.” —The Washington Post“Rehm doesn’t have all the answers, nor does she pretend to. What she does have, as always, is a flurry of important questions, perfectly considered and potently posed.” —USA Today “Poignant.”—The Miami Herald “A plainspoken . . . passionate account . . . of [Rehm’s] journey through the first year of widowhood…. Eschewing self-help clichés … Rehm offers a meticulous narrative of her personal struggle to come to terms with a profound loss.” —BookPage“Will invite comparisons to Joan Didion’s own memoir of loss, The Year of Magical Thinking.” —The Guardian (London) “[A] clearheaded yet emotional call for national right-to-die laws.” —The Washington City Paper “Rehm writes eloquently about the changing landscape of grief, not only her own sorrow but that of friends.” —The Kansas City Star “Brave and uplifting.” —Kirkus Reviews “Walks readers through the most recent year of [Rehm’s] life, struggling with living alone and figuring out a new identity.” —Philadelphia Inquirer
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