{"product_id":"life-with-sudden-death-michael-downing-9781582436159","title":"Life with Sudden Death: A Tale of Moral Hazard and Medical Misadventure","description":"The youngest of nine children, Michael Downing was three when his father died -- suddenly and inexplicably. No autopsy was performed. The family diagnosis was God's will. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAs a boy, Downing rigorously trained as a spiritual athlete, preparing to vault into heaven. But eventually he escaped the religious dogma, and the family arena -- until one of his brothers died in 2003, suddenly and inexplicably. No autopsy was performed. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eAlarmed, Downing pursued a diagnosis: Drawn into a world of researchers, clinicians, and manufacturers with their own arcane ethics and faith, Downing discovered he had inherited a mutant protein from his father, and the first symptom would be his sudden death. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eTo save his life, a defibrillator was hard-wired to his heart. Within weeks, he needed emergency surgery to remove the device and the life-threatening infection he got with it. Two months later, he was re-implanted -- only to read in his morning newspaper that the new wires anchored to his heart were prone to failure. His device might be powerless, or it might deliver a series of unwarranted, possibly fatal, shocks. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eFrom a bedeviled boyhood in the Berkshires to a grim comedy of errors in one of Boston's best hospitals, \u003ci\u003eLife with Sudden Death\u003c\/i\u003e is a wild ride.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Michael Downing\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 1582436150\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9781582436159\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Counterpoint LLC\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/01\/2010\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 256\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Paperback\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 0.75lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 8.68h x 6.06w x 0.68d","brand":"Michael Downing","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":45933965377791,"sku":"9781582436159","price":16.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_20acb204-4208-4c76-a4d6-a434ecab1704.jpg?v=1721790022","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/life-with-sudden-death-michael-downing-9781582436159","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}