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Reviewed by David Jaggart for Readers' Favorite
Rachel Bennett Steury’s Losing My Kidney and Finding My Voice tells the story of how she chose to become a living kidney donor for a stranger. Her family already had a connection to organ donation through her Uncle Ed, who was a deceased donor. Because of that history, she grew up seeing giving as something that mattered on both a personal level and a broader social one. A televised news segment about kidney chains sparks a turning point, introducing her to the National Kidney Registry and the possibility that one donor can set off a series of life-saving transplants. From there, she walks through the long medical screening process, the psychological evaluations, the surgery itself, and the structured recovery. Along with her personal story, Steury explains dialysis statistics, transplant costs, and the economic strain of kidney failure. As she weighs the risk, responsibility, and solidarity of her decision, one question keeps repeating in my mind: What does it actually mean to give part of your body to someone you will never meet? Steury candidly shares what the experience taught her.
Losing My Kidney and Finding My Voice does not romanticize organ donation. Instead, Rachel Bennett Steury focuses on the real-life details, carefully showing the social, civic, financial, and personal layers behind her decision. She ties her working-class, union background to the idea of economic justice, arguing that a transplant restores not only health but the ability to work and live freely. The book seamlessly transitions between hospital rooms, policy debates, family memories, and national statistics, maintaining clarity throughout. I was struck by how calmly she discusses fear, risk, and doubt before surgery. I was honestly surprised by how rare non-directed donors actually are and how quickly most of us assume someone else will do it. Steury explores the myths about long-term health and questions the notion that giving like this is completely selfless. At the same time, she still makes space for community and gratitude. Overall, I found her memoir thoughtful, practical, and sincere. I highly recommend reading it.
