The Gifts of the Body

US: HARPERCOLLINS PUBLISHERS, 1995. Paperback. Very Good. A copy that has been read, but is in excellent condition. Pages are intact and not marred by notes or highlighting.The spine remains undamaged. An emotionally wrenching work of fiction about a health-care worker who ten ders compassion and love to victims of AIDS, by an author who "strips her l anguage of convention to lay bare the ferocious rituals of love and need."- New York Times Book Review Editorial Reviews An unnamed female healthcare worker relates her experiences as she cares fo r homebound patients with AIDS in this fictional memoir. Using different "g ifts" for scenario shifts, the narration flows through many of the changes that happen to the body and its functions as the disease progresses. Everyd ay challenges are simply depicted as she tends to the housekeeping duties o f her clients. Her actions embody the insightfulness, commitment, rapport, and humanity needed to sustain oneself at this job. The recording is read b y the author, so the direct, unsentimental yet powerful language unfolds ju st as she intended. The book has won several awards (the Lambda Literary Aw ard for Best Lesbian Fiction and the Boston Book Award, among others); the recording is highly recommended for all adult listeners.Kristin M. Jacobi, Eastern Connecticut State Univ., Willimantic - Library Journal.