The Soul of Care

The moving memoir of a doctor who became a family caregiver and learned why care is so central to all our lives.

When Dr Arthur Kleinman, an eminent Harvard psychiatrist and social anthropologist, began caring for his wife, Joan, after she was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer's disease, he found just how far the act of caregiving extended beyond the boundaries of medicine. In The Soul of Care, he delivers a deeply inspiring story about what it means to grapple with illness from both sides, as an experienced doctor and a loving husband.

Caregiving is long, hard, unglamorous work—at moments joyous, more often tedious, sometimes agonizing, but always rich in meaning. Describing the practical, emotional, and moral aspects of caring, Kleinman explores how we must ask uncomfortable questions of ourselves and of our doctors. Poignant and honest, The Soul of Care is an uplifting story about what really matters in our lives.