Laura Elizabeth Rothenberg (February 3, 1981 – March 20, 2003) was an American author. She wrote a memoir describing her life with
cystic fibrosis called ''Breathing for a Living''.
Biography
Laura Rothenberg was born February 3, 1981
and she grew up in New York City. Shortly after birth she was diagnosed with
cystic fibrosis, a fatal disease with varying life expectancy.
Goddaughter of
Debra Winger
Debra Lynn Wingerhttps://www.pressreader.com/usa/closer-weekly/20200511/282084868951188https://www.discountmags.com/magazine/closer-weekly-may-11-2020-digital/in-this-issue/99961 (born May 16, 1955)https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Inter ...
, Rothenberg attended
The Chapin School in Manhattan and then
Brown University where she studied English until the deterioration of her cystic fibrosis forced her to withdraw and she decided to pursue a lung transplant, though it posed its own health risks.
She received a double
lung transplant
Lung transplantation, or pulmonary transplantation, is a surgical procedure in which one or both lungs are replaced by lungs from a donor. Donor lungs can be retrieved from a living or deceased donor. A living donor can only donate one lung lobe. ...
at age 20,
in July 2001.
In the spring of 2002, she returned to Brown where she took a course on autobiographical writing, beginning writing that formed the basis of her later memoir. She also began recording audio of her experience when a radio producer, Joe Richman, lent her a tape recorder.
Rothenberg's audio diary, ''My So-Called Lungs: A Young Girl's Diary of Living with Dying from Cystic Fibrosis'', aired on
NPR
National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...
on August 5, 2002.
Health again forced Rothenberg to withdraw from Brown in November 2002 and on March 20, 2003, she died of chronic rejection of the transplant.
Her memoir was published posthumously by
Hyperion on May 12, 2003. ''Breathing for a Living'' describes her fight with
cystic fibrosis and her decision to pursue a double
lung transplant
Lung transplantation, or pulmonary transplantation, is a surgical procedure in which one or both lungs are replaced by lungs from a donor. Donor lungs can be retrieved from a living or deceased donor. A living donor can only donate one lung lobe. ...
.
A starred review in ''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' said, "Refusing to indulge in even a wisp of false hope or consolation, Rothenberg reminds us that there is a power in us that is greater than even the greatest suffering...an unforgettably real testament of the strength of one human spirit, and of our common human wish to know and say and be the truth.
In ''
The Washington Post
''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'',
Roland Merullo wrote, "Those in the grasp of a fatal illness will recognize themselves here – the loneliness, the pain and hope – as will family members and friends. The rest of us, so often oblivious to our good luck, might be moved to set the book down between chapters and put our complaints in perspective."
List of works
*"My So-Called Lungs", ''All Things Considered'', NPR, August 5, 2002
*''Breathing for a Living'', Hyperion, 2003
References
External links
''My So-Called Lungs: A Young Girl's Diary of Living and Dying from Cystic Fibrosis'' on NPRExcerptfrom ''Breathing for a Living'' on ''
The Today Show
''Today'' (also called ''The Today Show'' or informally, ''NBC News Today'') is an American news and talk morning television show that airs weekdays from 7:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m. on NBC. The program debuted on January 14, 1952. It ...
'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rothenberg, Laura
1981 births
2003 deaths
Deaths from cystic fibrosis
Brown University alumni
Chapin School (Manhattan) alumni
Writers from Manhattan
Lung transplant recipients
20th-century American memoirists
20th-century American women writers
21st-century American women