Love Life A Novel [Paperback]

Dan and Carmen have it all, it seems: They are young, rich, good-looking, satisfied in their work and love life, and are the parents of a beautiful three-year-old daughter. When Carmen is diagnosed with breast cancer, Dan is unable to cope with her illness and the changes this brings to their happy, yuppie family life. While the beautiful and optimistic Carmen submits to chemotherapy and eventually a mastectomy, hedonistic Dan tries to find solace with his buddies and in several flings before he finally stops running away and succeeds in supporting Carmen in her decision to end her life with dignity.Love Lifeis an account of a terminal illness that is devoid of glitz or fake sentiment. Distressing hospital situations and spot-on characterizations of doctors and therapists alternate with the many heart-wrenching moments through the course of Carmen's illness, as both she and Dan come to terms with what commitment really means.Love Lifeis completely unapologetic, extremely controversial, but ultimately uplifting and life-affirming.

After Ray Kluun's thirty-six-year-old wife was diagnosed with breast cancer and died in 2001, he moved to Australia with his small daughter and began writingLove Life,which is modeled on his own experiences. Kluun now lives in Amsterdam and has just published a follow-up novel,The Widower.

1. What is Dan to you: A heartless philanderer who didn't deserve Carmen, or a modern emotional realist who deals with a painful experience the best he can?

2. Euthanasia is legal in the Netherlands, and Carmen does resort to this solution to end her ordeal. Do you believe this should be an option here in the U.S. as well, and should it extend beyond cases of terminal illness?

3. Discuss how Dan changes throughout the book. Did your opinion of him shift at some point? Did he become more or less sympathetic?

4. LOVE LIFE, although a novel, is largely based on the author's own experiences, and manl$