Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by Atul Gawande, 282 pages

My sisters, the nurses, both told me I had to read this book.  I'm glad they did.  In "Being Mortal" doctor and author Atul Gawande discusses how medicine has triumphed over the dangers of childbirth, injury and disease.  However, when it comes to the reality of aging and death, modern medicine often fails.

Through real-life stores Dr. Gawande shows what we face - nursing homes devoted to safety, not well-being.  And doctors and patients who avoid discussing the inevitability of death to the detriment of those patients' quality of life.

Yes, death is a difficult subject, but ain't none of us getting out of here alive.  I listened to this book, but also checked out a print copy after I finished it to make sure I was able to write down some key points I want to have for the time I - or a loved one - faces a serious illness.