Win a signed copy of Change of Heart by Shari Maurer

This week I read a book called Change of Heart by Shari Maurer.  In honor of Valentines Day and hearts and all that, I though this would be an appropriate review for this week.  My sincere thanks to Shari Maurer for sending me this book to read and review.

(From the book jacket)  Shortly after her sixteenth birthday, popular varsity soccer star Emmi gets the worst possible news- she’s had myocarditis that’s destroyed her heart, putting her into congestive heart failure.  Now she can barely walk across a room without stopping to rest.  Without a heart transplant, she’ll die in a matter of months.  It’s only her growing friendship with Abe, the funny, smart teen she meets in the cardiac clinic, that cheers her up.  But difficult questions race through her mind while she waits:  Will she get a heart in time?  Will she even survive the surgery?  What if her body rejects the heart?  When tragedy strikes close to home, Emmi must rely even more on her inner strength in order to carry on.

Without a question, this was an engaging read.  Shari Maurer does an excellent job bringing the emotions, frustrations and fear of transplant patients to life in her characters.  For most of us, organ donation isn’t something we put a lot of time and effort into thinking about.  I’ve never really given a lot of in depth thought as to how people waiting for a new heart might feel, how scared and how frustrating it must be for your whole life to be out of control, dependant on someone else.  There were so many emotions!  I finished reading this book with a new perspective on being an organ donor.  And that is what I liked about this book.  It raises awareness and helps you emotionally connect to the message it is delivering. 

My conservative nature must admit that the language and sexual content in this book were very distracting from the message and emotion I was feeling.  I realize that I’m in a minority when it comes to my views on such things, but that’s how it was for me.


At the end of her book, Maurer gives some insightful statistics.  Each day, approximately 18 people die in the U.S. because of the shortness of organ donors.  Every 11 minutes a new name is added to the waiting list.  You can enroll in the organ donor registry in your state but you must be 18 to do so.  For more information you can visit www.donatelife.net .  


If you'd like a chance to read this book too, please make sure you follow me and then leave a comment with your email address so I can contact you if you win.  Thanks a bunch for stopping by and Happy Valentines Day!