Partners of the Heart tells the story of Vivien Thomas and Alfred Blalock, whose discoveries saved the lives of thousands of "blue babies"-- children born with a deadly heart defect. The men's stunning success ushered in a new era of cardiac medicine and launched modern heart surgery. At age 19, with only a high school degree and at a time when his color barred him from being treated in many hospitals, the African-American Thomas began his work with Blalock.