Moonface by Angela Balcita

This is a memoir written by a woman who has a kidney disease. I won't get into all the medical jargon that none of us can spell or pronounce, but just try to sum it up real quick.

Angela's kidney began failing her when she was in College. It would no longer clean her blood. Her brother stepped in and gave her his kidney. Ten  years later, she rejects the kidney and has to go on dialysis. By this point, she is with Charlie.

Charlie is a really likable guy. He remains positive when Angela gets down. "This is a new moment for you. This is the new you. Pretend for a second that everything you're scared of is getting washed out by this machine. That somehow, you'll come out of this whole thing feeling refreshed and brand new. Healthy. Maybe even better than before."

And Charlie gives her his kidney. This can make or break a relationship. What if her body rejects his kidney? What does that mean for them? Does that signify that their love will not last either?

Here is where I started to frown. I would think at this point, that Angela would count her blessings and finally be happy, but after a few years, she decides she wants a baby too and organ transplantees with previously failed kidneys don't have a good track record with the baby thing.

Full disclosure: I have never been equipped with the maternal gene. I have never had any desire whatsoever to have a baby. In 1979 when the baby gods were passing out genes to unborn fetuses, they forgot to hand me that one. So the last quarter of the book... I didn't like it. It goes on and on about wanting a baby, chili cravings, desire to see the baby. Angela did not want to adopt, despite the risks she was taking to herself and the unborn child and despite the fact that there are million of homeless babies and children out there.. so this is a personal issue for me. I was put off.

**Spoiler**

Of course, she loses her husband's kidney after that, no big surprise. The big surprise is that a third donor steps up to hand over her kidney, but I found myself wondering.. what is going to happen to that kidney when another baby craving pops up?

**End of Spoiler**

I think it's a touching story that most people, women anyway, will really like though I didn't feel the writing flowed together all that well. 

I bought this on Amazon.