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Chapter 3 describes Johnny's initial ill state, and then seeming recovery, within a week of beginning the Gerson diet. His papilledema diminished, and his blood counts improved. Johnny began to be tutored in this period in an attempt to make up for lost classwork, with the hope of graduating with
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But had lived to be 90 and had his achievements filled encyclopedias, he could have made no greater achievement than this, transmitted by his father: To show us what, on its highest levels of courage, serenity, truth and beauty, a human life can be; to show us that as we live we die, and life and
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the following spring. In
December 1946, Johnny's condition worsened, leading to a second operation. Dr. Lester Mount reporting that "he had successfully drained an abscess that went five centimeters into the brain beyond the table of the skull, and had got out a full cup of pus and fluid." Johnny
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Chapter 4 begins with Johnny's apparent recovery, and then, starting in late
February, his decline. He began having episodes of amnesia and shivering. Through March and April, he continued studying in an effort to graduate and be admitted to Harvard University for the fall. The bump on Johnny's
202:, was reluctant to take on this book. They were concerned that it was too private a subject for the general public. To forestall criticism for profiting off of his death, both the author and the publisher agreed to donate all profits to children's cancer research.
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On May 1, 1947, Johnny underwent another major operation. Dr. Mount reported that "the mass was even invading his scalp and that, despite the depth he had reached, 11 cm., he had never penetrated to the healthy brain tissue at all."
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The book consists of two parts. Part 1 contains the primary narrative of the book, while Part 2 contains additional letters written by Johnny, excerpts from his diary, and a short essay by his mother, Frances
Gunther.
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Gunther wrote the book in the months after his son's death, originally with the idea of printing some copies to distribute privately, as some parents had done in remembrance of soldiers who were
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skull, caused by the tumor, began growing, and Dr. Mount attempted to drain it of fluid. However, the bump was "like stone again, and Mount had scarcely been able to drain a drop."
155:(pressure on the nerves to the eyes) caused by the tumor. Johnny's parents, John and Frances, sought help from many sources. Between August 1 and 5, 1946, Johnny was treated with
140:, said, "It was about the size of an orange. I got half of it." Johnny recovered from the surgery, while the nature of the tumor was assessed: it was described as an "
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was consulted, and Johnny began a special, highly regimented program of diet and enemas on
September 7, 1946, visiting Dr. Gerson's nursing home for the first time.
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Chapter 2 begins in June 1946 when Johnny underwent daily X-ray treatment of his tumor until June 20. Johnny's vision was impaired to varying degrees because of
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The vignette, “Death Be Not Proud,” the profits from which went to children's cancer research, was probably Mr. Gunther's most vividly memorable work.
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Chapter 1 begins with Johnny's diagnosis with a brain tumor in the spring of 1946. It describes the first operation that Johnny underwent, at the
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wrote that "It is this memory which John
Gunther has attempted to preserve in a memoir heart-breaking in its quiet simplicity and restraint."
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The book is an account of Johnny
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was discharged from the hospital on
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The
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Chapter 5 describes Johnny's graduation from high school and his death, on June 30, 1947.
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Thompson, Dorothy (1949-02-11). "Memorial to a Son - 'Death Be Not Proud'".
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The primary narrative consists of five chapters, and an
Aftermath section.
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At the time the book was published in the late 1940s, memoirs about
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385:"Heartbreaking Memoir of a Boy: Death Be Not Proud".
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Graham, Katharine (1949-01-30). "The
Magazine Rack".
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Albin Krebs, in his obituary for John Gunther, wrote
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Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
