It wasn't until I finished this book and was discussing it with my wife that I realized that the author never discussed times when she failed. There were plenty of surgical mishaps in the book, but they always seemed to happen to other doctors. Her patients, if they died, died from things like pulmonary embolisms that wouldn't have been found in heart surgery. Still, it was an interesting read about the challenges of balancing family with a career as demanding of your time as heart transplant surgeon. I found the discussions of the surgeries much more interesting than her fighting against the established male hierarchy in heart surgery. ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed reading this memoir. She comes across as a superwoman but she writes in a very readable manner -- only a little "too much" about how hard her work and life is, even though she absolutely loves it and wouldn't have it any other way. And the idea of saving everyone? I found some of the descriptions of what some of the people went through in order to "live"---maybe too much terrible effort? ( )

This is a very interesting memoir of a woman in the highly competitive, prohibitively male-dominated field of cardiac surgery. The author conveys her love for cardiac surgery, as well as her struggle to retain a traditional family life as a wife and mother. She places special emphasis on women's heart health. Enlightening and encouraging, this memoir is particularly recommended for female professionals juggling a career and a family. ( )