'Dear Life: A Doctor’s Story of Love and Loss' by Rachel Clarke

Bereavement and misery have been a constant in this troubled year of coronavirus death charts.

Although it may sound strange, I found it helpful to read profoundly thought-provoking books about mortality, such as David Jarrett’s “Meditations on Death: Notes from the Wrong End of Medicine.”

The book that bowled me over, however, was Dear Life by palliative care doctor Rachel Clarke. Although it is a painful read, because it forces you to reflect on some of the worst situations anybody ever has to face, the book is also a compassionate, wise gem, full of its own moments of sweetness.

Clarke powerfully conveys the battering the NHS has endured over the past decade of austerity and false government promises, and her book should be essential reading for anyone who cares about our beleaguered health system. “Dear Life” was simply the most inspiring book I read in 2020.

The Independent