The author, former editor of French Elle magazine, describes the rare stroke to the brain stem that left his mind intact in a nearly totally paralyzed body.

Translation of: Le scaphandre et le papillon. Originally published by Éditions Robert Laffont, Paris, in 1997. "Vintage International."

Prologue -- The wheelchair -- Prayer -- Bathtime -- The alphabet -- The empress -- Cinecittà -- Tourists -- The sausage -- Guardian Angel -- The photo -- Yet another coincidence -- The dream -- Voice offstage -- My lucky day -- Our very own Madonna -- Through a glass, darkly -- Paris -- The vegetable -- Outing -- Twenty to one -- The duck hunt -- Sunday -- The ladies of Hong Kong -- The message -- At the wax museum -- The mythmaker -- "A day in the life" -- Season of renewal.