Communications: Transplant Books and Reviews

Most recent book and/or review added: March 8, 2013

"Wow, what a great source of information and inspiration. 
I've already purchased four of the books highlighted here and now
recommend this TRIO resource to my nursing friends..."
- comments from a transplant nurse in Omaha, NE

Note: as of August 2012, this entire collection of over 150 transplant related books, many autographed by the authors and most with reviews, have been moved to the Gift of Life Donor Program's new Family House library to be available for families and patients visiting there.

Introduction:
These book reviews reflect the opinions and writings of Jim Gleason, heart transplant recipient, author and book reviewer, and do not represent the views of TRIO or any of its members.  If you are an author of a transplant related book and would like to submit your book for review consideration, send an e-mail request to GleasonJim@aol.com and I promise you a prompt reply.

On the TRIO Bulletin Board, under the Transplant: Book Reviews forum, there are short descriptive summaries of many transplant books. Full reviews of these books are linked from those entries, but also listed here alphabetically to guide your transplant reading pleasure.

While many of these books may be out of print, try the Amazon.com web site and if the book is  listed is is often available as a used and heavily discounted book, sometimes for as little as $0.01 (plus shipping and handling of $3.99).

Keep in mind that typically it takes some extreme experience to have a story worth writing a book about, so what you read in these books, while factual and real-life, should not be taken as "typical" transplant experiences. Every patient will have their own unique transplant challenges and outcomes. Read them for the inspiration they offer us all in how the human spirit can deal with life's "adventures" and then go off to write your own "real-life" story.

Click on the book title to download the full review (each a PDF file between 30k and 100k in size) where a review exists.  Not all have reviews to download and some are in progress of being written.

Note: for a graphical book cover list of the many reviewed books, click here --> Book Reviews

• 30 Lessons for Living: Tried and True Advice from the Wisest Americans ((2011) by Karl Pillemer, Ph.D. (collection of wisdom about living life based on interviews by prominent sociologist)
  
• A Change of Heart by Claire Sylvia with Wm Novak (1997) (Claire Sylvia's heart/lung transplant story and her post transplant change of personality traits experience)
  
• A Gift for Ron, Friendship and Sacrifice On and Off the Gridiron by Everson Walls and Kevin Blackistone (2009) (football sports story about NFL player donating a kidney to help a fellow player)
  
• A Gift from the Heart  (heart patient shares experiences and support in a free book on data CD - read via the online title link here or send request for the CD to Gleasonjim@aol.com with your mailing address)
  
• A Litlle Girl's Gift by Lawrence Elliot (2011 special 50th anniversary edition) (true story of Janis Babson, dying of Leukemia, inspired others by donating the gift of her corneas in 1961)
  
• A Matter of Heart: One Woman's Triumph Over Breast Cancer and a Heart Transplant by Nancy Shank Peddler (1998) (Personal inspiring story of breast cancer survivor after heart transplant)
  
• A New Heart for Christmas  (a Christmas pageant script and music about "one small child, one big miracle" waiting for a heart transplant that finally comes at Christmas)
  
• A Sister's Love by Claudia Rose Novak (2010) (a caregivers story of helping her sister through liver transplant)
  
• A Transplant for Katy by Luis Fabregas (2012) (reporter's story of a college student who underwent a liver transplant at UPMC serves as cautionary tale for people to learn more about the procedure and the motives of some surgeons)
  
• Adam's Journey by Margaret M. McCarthy (2012) (rare mitochondrial disease, one family's search for a miracle)
  
• After the Diagnosis: Transcending Chronic Illness by Julian Seifter, M.D.  (2010) (a doctor who is also a patient, shares his lessons learned both in his kidney practice and his own life as a patient with diabetes)
  
• Anatomy of an Illness by Norman Cousins (reflections on healing and regeneration as perceived by the patient)
  
• And Then I Saw a Rainbow: The Journey of a Dialysis Patient by Carole Imber Soloff (2011) (not just her own story but a shared story of many from dialysis to transplant, offered to inspire those still undergoing treatment)
  
• Andrew's Gift by Carl Hoegerl (2011) (donor story with coincidental donor mom and heart recipient doctor stories in a short easy to read book for all ages)
• Another Second Chance: God's Story by Troy Lewis (2012)  (story of a living kidney donation that saved both his and a brother's life)
  
• Before My Heart Stops: A Memoir by Paul Cardall (2010) (Born with half a heart, this is the true story of one man's struggle to survive long enough to get a second chance at life with a heart transplant; also a popular musician)
  
• Better by Atul Gawande (2007) (a surgeon's notes on medical practice performance measurement)
  
• Big T.'s Heart's in Me by Valerie M. D'Ortona (link) (book for children of all ages, designed to promote seat-belt safety and organ donation; based on a true story as told through whimsical animals)
  
• Black and White and Red All Over by  Martha McNeil Hamilton & Warren Brown (2002) (review pending) (living kidney donation to co-worker of a different race)
  
• Breathtaking by Amber Nicole Metz (CF patient with double lung transplant)
  
• Burned But Not Broken by Michael Nolte (extreme burn patient with tissue transplant)
  
• Change of Heart by Brian Hartford and Peggy McCardle  (heart transplant life story)
• Change of Heart (a novel about prisoner's offer of his heart for victim's daughter's transplant)
• Change of Heart by Robbie Pittman (2011) (personal account of life before and after heart transplant
  
• Cold Hands, Warm Heart - a novel by Jill Wolfson (2009) (teen story of friendship and heart transplant)
  
• Coma Life by Richard S. Darling, D.D.S.  (multiple liver transplant patient recalls life during coma)
  
• Confessions of  a Kidney Transplant Recipient by Mary Wu (just completed in Fall of 2012, Mary is working on getting her beautiful book published, but you can read it now with  all chapters posted on Mary's blog as they were completed) (life story of two time kidney recipient's life since being diagnosed with kidney disease at age of 4) Click here for a review
  
• Conquering Life's Curves: Baseball, Battles & Beyond  by Ed Hearn and Gene Frenette  (2000) (about the ups and downs of professional baseball playing and ups and downs of kidney disease; of winning, and meeting the challenges in his struggle to overcome the limitations of chronic kidney failure and dialysis)
  
• Coping with an Organ Transplant by Elizabeth Parr, Ph.D. and Janet Mize, R.N. (2001) (sound information and meaningful  advice from an organ transplant recipient and a transplant nurse)
  
• Dancing with Angels - A Transplant Odyssey by Elizabeth Pratt (2008) (a large collection of 66 short chapter writings about organ donation and transplantation built around the author's own true story)
  
• Dying to Live by Gaea Shaw  (heart transplant patient story of recovery and new life winning medals in swimming)
  
• Dying Was the Best Thing that Ever Happened to Me by William E. Hablitzel, MD (2006)  (doctor's collection of dying patients lessons in living)
  
• Enjoy Every Sandwich: Living Each Day As If It Were Your Last (2011) by Lee Lispenthal, M. D. (written while dying, a doctor used to helping patients face cancer and death, finds himself without fear when he faces his own mortality - dying of cancer shortly before his book got published)
  
• Every Second Counts by Donald McRae (2006)  (story of first human heart transplant, historical narrative)
  
• Extra Time: A story of a Liver Transplant by Margaret Chalmers (1995) (true life first hand account of a liver transplant)
  
• Field Notes on the Compassionate Life by Marc Ian Barasch  (research book on human compassion with a few examples from organ donation)
  
• Fighting for Life: The story of a courageous pro-life Democrat whose own brush with death made medical history by Robert P. Casey (1996) (true life story of Pennsylvania Governors life saving and history making heart/liver transplant in 1993) (Review pending)
  
• Final Exam by Pauline Chen  (liver transplant surgeon shares own experiences through medical training and later as a
  practicing surgeon with death and dying)
  
• First Do No Harm by former NY Times correspondent, Lisa Belkin (1993)  (dramatic story of real doctors and patients making impossible choices at a big city hospital)
  
• Friends, Lovers, Chocolate by Alexander McCall Smith  (novel involving heart transplant)
  
• Giving Life by Tom Falsey (2008) (collection of donor and transplant stories)
  
• Glamour Interrupted  by  Steve Cojocaru (2008) (Humorous, true to life journey through pre-transplant, transplant, and after transplant care based on two kidney transplants )
  
• God Spare Life by Dr Claudia Lynn Thomas  (transplant surgeon's own kidney transplant story)
  
• Gracyn's Song: A Journey from Facing Crisis to Finding Hope by Kris & Gracyn DenBesten (2010) (9 year old heart transplant finds joy in Christian song and hope) (review pending)
  
• Great Medical Discoveries - Heart Transplants by Nancy Hoffman (2003) (story of heart transplantation through pioneering surgeons and courageous patients -from the first operation on a beating human heart to the reality of the artificial heart, the rapid progression of cardiac surgery and the ethical issues that arise with each new development are discussed)
• Hanging by a String by Marilyn Gibson (lupus patient leads to kidney transplant through living donation)
  
• Have Heart: David Eckstein by  David Eckstein, Greg Brown (2006) (Story of baseball hero/"good guy" from family of kidney donors and failing kidneys)
  
• Healing and the Mind  by Bill Moyers (1993) (through interviews with world-renowned experts and laypeople, this work explores the mind-body connection from many angles)
  
• Healing Hearts: A Memoir of a Female Heart Surgeon by Kathy E. Magliato, MD (2010) (Autobiography of  the life and career of a female heart surgeon in a male dominated world of cardiac surgeons)
• Heart of Iron: My Journey from Transplant Patient to Ironman Triathlete by Kyle Garlett  (2011) (autobiography of heart transplant recipient moving on to run in the Iron-man triathlon event)
  
• Heartfelt, a Journey Through Transplant by Joseph Panza (2009) (heart transplant love story told from the husband's blog/caregiver side)
  
• Hearts Like Mine by Merle Zuel (2009) (one man's journey through his heart transplant and recovery)
  
• Heaven is for Real (2010) by Todd Burpo with Lynn Vincent ( a little boy's true life astounding story of his trip to heaven and back)
  
• Hello darlin': Tall (and absolutely true) tales about my life by Larry Hagman (2001) (entertaining autobiography of "Dallas" TV star who has long served as the US Transplant Games host sharing his liver transplant success)
  
• Hit the Ground Running: An Insider's Guide to Surviving Hep D, Liver Transplant and Beyond by Pam Shuford Murray (2007) (how to be a proactive member of your health team through liver disease and successful transplant)
  
• Hope from My Heart by Richard DeVos  (2000) (ten lessons for life from heart transplant recipient and Amway founder, Richard DeVos)
  
• How Doctors Think by Jerome Groopman, MD (how doctors come to the diagnosis and how a patient can help them make the correct one)
  
• How to Live Between Office Visits by Bernie Siegel, MD (1993) (a guide to life, love and health)
  
• How We Die by Sherwin B. Nuland, MD  (1995) (medical insights into the body's dying process for major causes of death)
• How Will They Get That Heart Down Your Throat? : A Child's View of Transplants by Karen Walton (1997) (Tells the story of a kindergarten teacher who underwent a heart transplant in May of 1995, and in so doing provides information about the process of organ donation)
• Humbled by the Gift of Life, Reflections on Receiving a Lung Transplant by Diane Young (2012) (faith based life story of a lung transplant) (coming out in Feb 2012)
  
• It Was Only a Moment Ago: More Stories of Healing and Wisdom Along Life's Journey by William E. Hablitzel, MSD (2011) (a continuation/sequel to his popular book, Dying Was the Best Thing That Ever Happened to Me, this doctor/story-teller shares the wisdom that came from listening to his patients)
  
• I'll Take Tomorrow by Mary Gahlke/Max Jennings (1985) (Story of a Courageous Woman Who Dared to Subject Herself to a Medical Experiment-The First Successful Heart-Lung Transplant)
  
• Irreplaceable by Stephen Lovely (2009) (his first novel, an emotional journey of the heart, relates the story of two Midwestern families after a death and the gift of a life saving heart transplant)
  
• Kelly's People by Walter Wager (2002) (a thriller  novel about five transplant recipient CIA agents called upon to save the world)
  
• Kyla's Kidney Adventure by Kyla Aquina (explains many transplant related terms in kid-friendly terms. This book can be available through the National Kidney Foundation of Northern California)
  
• Larry's Kidney: Being the True Story of How I Found Myself in China with My Black Sheep Cousin and His Mail-Order Bride, Skirting the Law to Get Him a Transplant--and Save His Life by Daniel Asa Rose (2009) (the title says it all)
  
• Laura's New Heart by Laura Fine (2004) (a spiritual healer's life story of her journey through heart transplant)
  
• Letters for Lizzie by James O’Donnell  (real-life caregiver letters to heart transplant wife)
  
• Life in Limbo by Lisa Stiles Nance  (caregiver’s side of the story with the patient’s spouse sharing her wait for his heart transplant)
  
• Life is a Gift by Bob & Judy Fisher (2008) ("inspirations from the soon departed" is a collection of insights from interviews with 104 patients in hospice care i.e., in their final days - not directly transplant related)
  
• Lifelines: the Intimate Experiences of a Transplant Patient and His Family by Ronald P. Jensh, Ph.D. (2000)  (A diary based account of this physician's heart transplant experience with emphasis on relationships of support) (Review pending)
  
• Life Row by Ed Linz (1997) (a case study of how a family can survive a medical crisis based on author's real life heart transplant life experience)
  
• Living a Miracle by Randy Sims (2006)  (motivational insights from a CF patient with double lung transplant)
  
• Lizzy Gets a New Liver by Lizzy Ribal (8 yr old) (1997) (children's book, spiral bound, illustrated, liver transplant story by recipient who got that liver at age 3-1/2)
  
• Love Brought Me Back: a Journey of Loss and Gain by Natalie Cole (with David Ritz) (2010) (an autobiography of this celebrity's journey of loss and gain with a kidney transplant in 2009) (review pending)
  
• Medicare for Baby Boomers & Beyond by Robert Steadman (2009) (a doctor's guide to Medicare for patients facing that life challenge)
  
• Molecules of Emotion by Candace B. Pert, Ph.D. (1997) (research scientist describes the search for biochemical links in the human body, possibly related to "cellular memory" in the peptides of the transplanted cell)
  
• Mommy Can Play Again by TRIO Philadelphia (2011) (a downloadable book by children for children of a family facing transplant - true life story with illustrations drawn by the children of transplant families)
  
• Moonface: a true romance by Angela Balcita (2011) (living kidney donor/recipient love story)
  
• Mr. Right and My Left Kidney by Joan Saltzman  (love story of living kidney donation between spouses)
  
• Mr. NewHeart by David Hollar  (early on - '91 - heart transplant patient story of hope and faith) - also available free for downloading at http://www.lulu.com/product/ebook/mr-newheart---heart-attack-to-transplant-and-beyond/14358067
  
• My Name is Joe by Richard L. Holloway (2006) (fiction story but based on liver transplant for their 4 year old son)
  
• My Brother's Gift by Linda Selvey Coyle (2008) (donor story as told through the eyes of a sixth grader living through the loss of her older brother)
  
• My Child Needs a Transplant, Now What? (2009) by Tandy & James Owen (family sharing of facing their child's liver transplant life challenges with faith and courage)
  
• My Favorite American by Dennis McCloskey (2008) (inspirational biography of a living donor kidney recipient young woman in Central PA overcoming PKD)
  
• My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Picoult (2004) (novel of family complexities involving a child born to provide bone marrow for her sister with leukemia, legally rebelling when called upon to be a living kidney donor at age 13)
  
• Never Say Never: A Life of Challenges by Gary Klausner (2011) (survival story of Gary's lifetime fighting CF, saved by a lung transplant in 1998)
  
• New Life by Bob Violino  (collection of transplant stories by TRIO member)
• New Organs Within Us: Transplants and the Moral Economy by Aslihan Sanal (2011)  (An ethnographic analysis of organ transplantation in Turkey, drawing on the moving stories of kidney-transplant patients and physicians in Istanbul)
• Nick's New Heart by Susan May (2008)  (pediatric heart transplant family success story)
• Noncompliant List by Kevin Hopf (2012) (a unique story that clearly explains why transplant recipients often experience psychological changes post surgery as well as a brief look into the life of a spiritual seeker)  Review pending
  
• Not So Brave by Robert Jaunsen (2009) (a novel - based on real life author's daughter - of young girl who overcomes a lifetime of medical challenges with a heart/liver transplant)
• Nothing to Confess by Don Hricik MD (2013) (fictional medical mystery based on the story of a single deceased donor who provides organ transplants for seven recipients who in turn face failure and death)
  
• Now Caitlin Can by Ramona Wood  (children's picture book telling story of pediatric kidney transplant)
  
• One Perfect Day by Lauraine Snelling  (2008) (novel of donor accident and resulting Christmas gifting of a heart)
  
• On the List by Steve Farber and Harlan Abrahams (2009) (true life story of living kidney donations with detailed description of how the process works and arguments for change in that process) (review pending)
  
• Or You Can Let Him Go by Kathryn Seidick (young couple's struggle to give their son a future full of hope despite kidney disease) (review pending)
  
• Organ Farm: Pig-to-Human Transplants: Medical Miracle or Genetic Time Bomb? by Jenny Bryan and John Clare (2001) (book to accompany the major TV documentary on this subject)
  
• Organ Procurement and Transplantation by the Committee on Organ Procurement and Transplantation Policy (1999) (an assessment of the potential impact of the Final Rule on organ transplantation)
  
• Organ Transplant: The Music of Life by Caren Mazure  (double lung patient account of dealing with life's challenges)
  
• Organ Transplants by Robert Finn  (medical book supported with collected personal advice/experiences in organ transplant)
• Organ Transplants: A Survival Guide for the Entire Family by Tina Schwartz (2005) (a survival guide for teens living through a parent facing an organ transplant)
  
• Passages in Caregiving: Turning Chaos into Confidence by Gail Sheehy (2010) (Bestselling author of Passages shares from her personal experience lessons in how to care for a loved on through chronic illness and death)
  
• Plain Vanilla with Rainbow Sprinkles by Tom Kasprzak (2008) (a faith filled family story of Mary, living an inspiring life with Down syndrome, who became an organ donor in passing at age 15)
  
• Prescriptions for Living by Bernie Siegel, MD (1998) (inspirational lessons for a joyful, loving life by this noted heart doctor)
  
• Racing Against Time: Surviving an Organ Transplant and Living a Healthy Life by Anthony Anjoubault (1995) (liver transplant success story with advice for healthy living)
  
• Raising Lazarus by Robert Pensack, MD and Dwight Williams (1994) (heart transplant life story of child born with cardiac issues and wanting to become a doctor)
  
• Ready, Set, Wait... Help for a Life on Hold by Karen Barber (1996) (With humor she describes life on hold and how to find solace through fellowship, friendship, and partnership)
  
• Recovering at Home with a Heart Condition by Florence Weiner, Mathew H.M. Lee, MD (1994) (a practical guide to daily living recovering from a heart condition)
  
• Rediscovering My Inner Bitch by Arlene C. Swirsky  (2007) (woman's journey through being "Diced, Spliced, and Transplanted" with a kidney)
  
• Resiliance: Faith,Focus,and Triumph by  Alonzo Mouring & Dan Wetzel (2008) (inspirational memoir by the NBA champion, Olympic gold medalist, and kidney transplant survivor)
  
• Rudy's Check Up by Stacy Raye Waibel (2009) (a 30 page illustrated soft cover children's  book about a doctor's visit post kidney transplant - part of a series: Rudy's Little World - note: Rudy is a poodle)
• Rudy Gets a Transplant by Stacy Raye Waibel (2008) (a 28 page illustrated soft cover children's  book about kidney transplant and living donation - part of a series: Rudy's Little World - note: Rudy is a poodle)
• Rudy's Incredible Kidney Machine by Stacy Raye Waibel (2011) (a 32 page illustrated hard  cover children's  book about dialysis and kidney transplant - part of a series: Rudy's Little World - note: Rudy is a poodle)
  
• Searching for David's Heart by Cherie Bennett (1998) ( teen reader book; Christmas story about teens searching for brother's heart recipient, used as basis for a movie of same title)
• Second Chances: Receiving the Gift of Life by Jeffrey R. Lueders (2000) (personal heart transplant story, along with collection of donor family and other recipients' stories)
  
• Second Wind: Oral Histories of Lung Transplant Survivors by Mary Jo Festle (2012) (Excerpts from oral history interviews reveal the physical and psychological challenges of deciding to pursue a transplant, waiting for a donor organ, and adapting to a new life with a lung from someone who died)
• Seven Letters that Saved My Life by Dottie Lessard (2010) (inspirational writing by a two-time organ transplant recipient, mother, writer, personal empowerment coach, motivational speaker and professional athlete)
  
• Shift Your Fate: Life-Changing Wisdom for Proactive Kidney Patients (2012) by Lisa Simon (strong advocacy for actively promoting your personal need for a living kidney donor with planning resources based on author's experiences)
  
• Sick Girl by Amy Silverstein (Oct 2007) (true life account of 19 year heart transplant survivor, Amy Silverstein)
  
• Sick Girl Speaks by Tiffany Christensen (2007)  (CF patient with double lung transplant shares insights into navigating the medical maze)
  
• Some Hearts Have Wings: A True Story of one family's Gift of Life by Lisa McHenry (takes us through a six-year period of her father’s struggle with heart failure, and eventual heart transplant)
• Somewhere Between Life and Death by Lurlene McDaniel (1991) (a novel involving teen dealing with a sister's acceptance of brain death and organ donation of her sibling)
  
• Still Me by Christopher Reeve (1998) (true life biography of "Superman's" life after devastating spinal chord injury leave him paralyzed)
  
• Stories From Her Journey by Liz Maxwell
• Stories of the Heart: Reflections on the heart transplant journey by Nancy Siemers (1999) (collection of powerful stories told by 50 persons who have been through the heart transplant experience)
  
• Sue Lockwood: Accepting the Challenge by Gordon Smith (2012) (caregiver's story of his blind/multi-kidney transplant sister's inspiring life story)
  
• Surviving Liver Diseases: Life with a Liver Transplant by M. Ahmed (1999) (told in two parts: 1st, a personal story of survival with a liver transplant, the 2nd, " education about your liver and its life essential role and how to take care of it)
  
• Swim: A Memoir of Survival by Bill Coon (2009) (with heart transplant in 1989 as an infant, this is a story of his heart - and a kidney - 2nd transplant 20 years later)
  
• Taking Flight: Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation (2006) compiled by Joanne Schum (250+ short stories from recipients of lung transplants)
  
• Taking Flight: Inspirational Stories of Lung Transplantation – More Journeys –  compiled by Joanne Schum (2011) (166 short stories from recipients of Lung Transplantation – from the entire world!)
  
• Taylor's Gift: A Courageous Story of Giving Life and Renewing Hope by Todd & Tara Storch ( story of 13 year old daughter giving life in death and family making contact with four of her recipients)
  
• The Art of Aging by Sherwin B. Nuland MD (2007) (a doctor's prescription for well-being)
  
• The Best He Had to Offer by Cynthia B. Herrick  (story of first living kidney transplants between identical twins)
• The Courage of One: The Inspirational Poetry of a Transplant Recipient by Joseph Kralicek (2005) (as the title says, beautiful inspirational poetry coming form the heart of a grateful transplant recipient)
  
• The Climb of My Life by Kelly Perkins (Nov 2007)  (inspiring story of heart transplant who climbs mountains to raise awareness)
  
• The Climb of My Life by Laura Evans (1996) (personal account of a miraculous journey from the edge of death to the victory of a lifetime over breast cancer) (not a transplant related book)
  
• The gift of life 2: Surviving the waiting list and liver transplantation: The inspirational story of one man's triumph over terminal liver disease: A guide for transplant patients and their families by Yomtoob & Wepler (2005) (...title says it all)
  
• The Gift That Heals by Reg Green (Jan 2008)  (collection of donor and transplant stories - released also in audio format Dec 2008)
  
• The Heart's Code by Paul Pearsall, Ph.D.  (theoretical study of cellular memory using heart transplant stories as anecdotal support)
  
• The Kidney Sellers: A Journey of Discovery in Iran by Sigrid Fry-Revere (2013) (an account of author's research trip into Iran to study their unique "pay for organ donation" program)
  
• The Last Day of My Life (2009) by Jim Moret (TV reporter/anchor reflects on death and in doing so, learns about living a full life)
  
• The Match: Complete Strangers, A Miracle Face Transplant, Two Lives Transformed by Susan Whitman Helfgot with Wm. Novak (2010)  (the second American face transplant real-life story as told by the donor's widow)  (review pending)
  
• The Mysteries Within by Sherwin B. Nuland, MD (2000) (a surgeon reflects on medical myths)
  
• The Next 15 Minutes: Strength From the Top of the Mountain (2012) by Kim Kircher (mountain EMT ski patroler wife uses that passion to share caregiver role for her husband facing life saving liver transplant) (Re4view pending)
  
• The Nicholas Effect by Reg Green (1999) (story of Nicholas Green and his death and donation impact on Italy's views and support of organ donation, and then the world)
  
• The Organ Donor Experience: Good Samaritans and the Meaning of Altruism by Katrina Bramstedt (Oct 2011) (Ethicist study of altruistic organ donors with profiles of 22 living donors) (review pending)
  
• The Power of Two  by Isabel Stenzel Byrnes & Anabel Stenzel (Nov 2007)  (inspiring story of twin CF patients and their double lung transplants)
  
• The Puzzle People by Thomas E. Starzel (1993) (memoirs of famous transplant surgeon, Thomas E. Starzl, with reflections on today's challenges in the medical/transplant world)
  
• The Reluctant Donor by Suzanne Ruff (2010) (life story of a living kidney donor to her sister, facing fear and doubts in the process)
  
• The Soul of Medicine by Sherwin B. Nuland (2009) (a collection of tales from doctors of many different medical areas in answer to the question: "who was your most memorable patient")
  
• The Sublime Engine: A Biography of the Human Heart by Stephen Amidon and Thomas Amidon, MD (2011) (an account of the different ways we have thought about the heart)
  
• The Surgeons by Charles R. Morris (Oct 2007)  (real-life day to day story of life in Columbia-Presbyterian Cardiac unit by a news reporter)
  
• The Uncertain Art by Sherwin B. Nuland (2008) (reflections on his long life in medicine by this renowned physician and author with a final chapter involving his grief over a patient's death waiting for a heart transplant)
  
• The Undead: Organ Harvesting, the Ice-Water Test, Beating Heart Cadavers - How Medicine Is Blurring the Line Between Life and Death (2012) by Dick Teresi (the title says it all... reporter's take on brain death declaration and its relationship to organ donation) - very controversial topic as this book treats it - for more click for a link to --> more resources in response to this author's WSJ article and subsequent NPR interview
  
• The Wisdom of the Body by Sherwin B. Nuland MD (1997) (also titled "How We Live" in its paperback edition -  the human spirit as described by this noted physician and author)
  
• This Little Heart of Mine by Joanne Farrell (2009) (48 page first person account of recent heart transplant and recovery)
  
• Through the Fire by John Watts (2004) (True Story of The Death To Life Experiences of A Preacher Who Received A Heart Transplant)
  
• Tiger's Eye: A Memoir by Inga Clendinner (2000) (life experience of liver disease - 1950's - through successful liver transplant with its mind altering impacts while suffering with that disease)
  
• To the Edge and Back by Chris Klug with Steve Jackson  (liver recipient and Olympic medal winning snow boarder autobiography)
  
• Transplant - a novel by John A. Elefteriades, MD (2009) (thriller story of heart surgeon kidnapped, seduced, threatened to make him perform a forbidden procedure)
  
• Transplant: From Myth to Reality by Nicholas L. Tilney, M.D.  (historical story of history of transplantation)
  
• Twenty Boy Summer a novel by Sarah Ockler (2009) (novel for teens - following organ donor boy friend's death, two girls explore summer romance)
  
• Unexpected Blessings: Finding Hope and Healing in the Face of Illness (2008) by Roxanne Black (Founder of Friend's' Health Connection and two time kidney transplant author shares her personal story along with those of many other celebrities and "common" folk) (review pending)
  
• What's Possible by Daryn Kagan (2008) (collected stories of amazing human accomplishments, some by transplant recipients and organ donor families, also available on the web in daily stories at darynkagan.com)
  
• When Crickets Cry, by Charles Martin (April 2006)  (novel about three heart recipients and their heart transplant surgeon)
  
• Will I Live, Will I Die by Patricia Kuhn (August 2008) (challenging liver transplant life story with insights from within a coma and hallucinatory effects of some meds)
  
• Your Heart Belongs to Me by Dean Koontz (December 2008) (novel murder mystery about international transplant tourist trade and heart recipient's being hunted down for his heart offense)
  
• Your Medical Mind: How to Decide What is Right for You (2011) by Jerome Groopman, MD and Pamela Hartzband, MD (husband and wife doctors share essential tools for making medical decisions, cutting through the health care system, the media and gaps in our own reasoning)
  
• YOU, The Owner's Manual by Michael F, Roizen, M.D. and Mehmet C. Oz, M.D.  (down to earth medical advice and educational resource for anyone)