Reading Groups

Reflections on Mortality from Leo Tolstoy and Paul Kalanithi with Thais Vitorelli

Clear

2 Sessions Saturdays, 11:00 am EDT - 12:30 pm EDT January 24 to February 21, 2026

Online via Zoom

The ‘With Books’ option includes the titles required for this group at a 10% discount from our Bookstore.

Meeting Dates:
1/24 & 2/21
Online via Zoom

The ethical, emotional, and philosophical insights of facing death will be discussed in this reading group about Paul Kalanithi’s Pulitzer Prize–nominated, New York Times bestselling memoir When Breath Becomes Air and Leo Tolstoy’s timeless masterpiece The Death of Ivan Ilyich, a work often praised as one of the greatest works of world literature.

Kalanithi, a neurosurgeon and literary scholar, reflects on his life and career after a terminal cancer diagnosis, examining what makes life meaningful and how one can live fully in the shadow of death. Tolstoy’s Ivan Ilyich similarly confronts his own impending death, revealing the tension between social convention, personal authenticity, and the search for significance. Reading these texts together invites us to consider how literature illuminates our understanding of time, identity, and what it truly means to live.

Expect a conversational atmosphere with close reading and guided discussion prompts, where creative and lived experiences will also serve as an integral part of the discussion.

Reading List:

The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy
When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi

What to read in advance of the first meeting: Please read When Breath Becomes Air in its entirety before the first meeting.

Pricing inclusive of sales tax if applicable. Please note: All virtual classes are recorded. Please click here for information about our recording policy.

Led by

Thais Vitorelli

Thais Vitorelli

Thais Vitorelli is an award-winning filmmaker, writer, and educator from São Paulo, Brazil. She holds an MFA in Writing for Children & Young Adults from The New School, and sometimes experiments with poetry and autofiction. Her stories have been featured in the Inquisitive Eater, Share Literary Journal, Pitch Wars, and Coca-Cola Refreshing Films.

About this series

Reading Groups

Whether you’re looking to catch up on great novels or you’re interested in exploring a new writer or literary period, our reading groups offer high-level literary discussion led by experts in the field.

Groups+Workshops

More Groups+Workshops

Groups+Workshops