 |
Jenny, who works programming computers to talk to people, has no idea that her life is about to become a nightmare, that she will lose half her face in a freak auto crash, and will be one of the people who needs the machines she has helped design. Transplant, written by Dr. Gerald Neufeld, a former professor of linguistics, centers on the traumatic loss of identity through the loss of one's face, a rare occurrence, but one that raises many important psychological, ethical, and medical questions. Wearing a gauzy veil that allows her to see out but prevents others from seeing her grotesque deformity, and speaking through a computerized device, Jenny becomes increasingly depressed and disassociated, an enigma to those around her. Psychological probing is a failure as her logical mind is miles ahead of her therapists. She lives in Canada where facial transplants are not allowed; until suddenly the law changes and she becomes a candidate. Having to choose "between my veils and my new face," Jenny unhesitatingly opts for the controversial and potentially fatal surgery. In the end, the new face and the unreserved love of a child will give her a new future.
This book is intelligently written and Jenny is an engaging heroine. Her story will have readers wanting to know more about real life facial transplants. The book is rooted in the latest medical and legal facts, presented almost like a non-fiction account, but with sufficient emotional layering to evince the reader's empathy. Transplant is a thought-provoking saga that raises many questions and will be appreciated by a large number of readers–women who are beset by image fears may especially enjoy pondering what life would be like without one's most prominent asset.
RECOMMENDED by the US Review