Book excerpt: When I experience pain, who or what is the me that suffers? When I relieve another's pain, who or what is the other that I restore to well-being? Increasingly, these questions seem answerable only through an understanding of narrative. Studies of pain narrative focus not simply on engrossing tales, but on complex and subtle processes rooted in the neurobiology of self-representation, emotion, and social interaction. These processes shape how individuals and cultures experience and report pain. Studies of narrative in its broadest sense not only deepen our understanding of pain and suffering, but also teach us about meaning, motivation, and discourse as represented in the biomedical, human, and social sciences. This book embodies the path-breaking multidisciplinary perspective that was created when leading contributors in neurobiology, integrative physiology, anthropology, psychology, sociology, and clinical research joined with clinicians, writers, and journalists from developed and developing countries. Together they have produced a unique volume that speaks to core issues integral to emerging pain research and humane health care in the 21st century.