The Diving-bell and the Butterfly

On December 8, 1995, Jean-Dominique Bauby's life was forever altered when a part of his body he'd never heard of--his brain stem--was rendered inactive. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly, his exquisitely painful memoir, is neither a triumphant account of recovery nor a journey into the abyss of self-pity. Instead, it is a tender testament to the power of language and love. At 43, Bauby was defined by success, wit and charisma. But in the course of a few bewildering minutes, the editor-in-chief of French Elle became a victim of the rare locked-in syndrome. The only way he could express his frustration, however, was by blinking his left eye. The rest of his body could no longer respond. Bauby was determined to escape the paralysis of his diving bell and free the butterflies of his imagination. And with the help of ESA, "a hit parade in which each letter is placed according to the frequency of its use in the French language," Bauby did so. Visitors, and eventually his editor, would read each letter aloud and he would blink at the right one. Slowly--painstakingly-- words, sentences, paragraphs and even this graceful book emerged.

Bauby relays the horrors and small graces of his struggle, which range from awaking one day to discover his right eye being sewn shut to realising the significance of Father's Day, a holiday previously absent from his family's "emotional calendar": "Today we spent the whole of the symbolic day together, affirming that even a rough sketch, a shadow, a tiny fragment of a dad is still a dad." The author makes it clear that being locked in doesn't kick open the doors of perception, but The Diving Bell and the Butterfly is nonetheless a celebration of life. Jean Dominique-Bauby died of a heart attack on March 9, 1997, two days after his book was published in France.

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Amazing and unique read - Rated
The enthusiasm for life that Jean-Dominique Bauby demonstrated in the whole book was amazing. And it was not for a matter of faiths or beliefs, but for a simple and pure love of life and everything that's part of it. Like the way he makes up recipes and tastes in his mind, or he listen to soft voices in his head that he calls butterflies. And even the way he classifies and changes the whole world around him, making it more exciting and new even if at the same time he is perfectly aware of his situation and of the way this makes his relatives and friends feel. He perfectly knows that they don't know anything about what's still inside this man that they see, who is so different from the one they knew before. He knows that his kids treat him different, and that everybody keeps going on with their lives without him, and then visits and tries to hide the tears. And this awareness which usually would make anyone fall into an absolute despair became for him a pretext to appreciate what he had, which is his mind, and his memories.

It's a book that I was expecting would have made me very sad (which it did, in those moments when he was in a bad and pessimistic mood), but for the most part it just made me feel lucky and special to be able to appreciate all this a thousand times more. The fact that makes it so unique is that it links something so tragic like an accident that leaves you almost completely paralized with being happy and living life fully, introducing the idea that, if something doesn't go exactly like you want or if you're unhappy, it might be because of you waiting too long to follow your wishes and then not being able to grasp all the chances we get.To be able to be happy just for the fact that I can walk and laugh and talk to people, and watch and hear, and realize how beautiful being alive is. It made me want to go out and do something, live it fully and take any possible chance I can, without missing out on anything.

Fall in love with every day life again - Rated
This is possibly the worst situation anyone could ever be in yet, Bauby tried his hardest to remain positive and showed heroic humour throughout the entire book. Whilst an unbelievably sad situation, the book is not depressing.

You can read the whole book quite quickly. Even those who don't read often can enjoy this reasonably short story with a huge positive impact.

For me, this book has reunited myself with the life we are supposed to be living. Appreciating whatever little we might have, whether it be the ability of complete or limited physical movement, or material possessions, we are unable to enjoy them if we don't appreciate them.

We must stop and smell the flowers more, or watch a butterfly in action when we have the opportunity. For me, doing these kinds of things, honours Bauby more as it is my way of showing appreciation of his efforts to survive in a crushed state.

For now, Jean-Dominique Bauby can rest in peace. And in the day of resurrection, he shall walk, talk and enjoy the real life again.
John 5:21, 28 & 29

Heartrending - Rated
Almost too poignant for words. A must read that will give you a kick up the pants and make you cherish all that's good in your life.

excellent - Rated
Short enough to read in one sitting, this book is well worth the read. It describes the vivid thoughts of a man struck down by a debilitating stroke at the peak of his career. Darkly comic and ultimately optimistic, the book is a compulsive page turner, and makes an excellent companion to the movie. Its all the more remarkable given that it was written through the medium of a blink of an eye.

Lasting impression - Rated
"Le Scaphandre et le Papillon" is a fantastic read full stop. I understand other's thoughts on this book and I respect their opinions, but for me, this book has had a lasting impression. I have also watched, about 2 years after having read the book, the French film version which was fairly accurate in relation to the book. I found that I gained enough insight into his former life to suffice - one must not expect memoirs of his entire life, but a focus upon his life after the stroke with a few references to his 'former' life. Both the book and the film are well written and produced and I have recommended and will continue to recommend it to anyone and everyone.