Gifts from Shane: A True Story of Love and Loss

Bartlett has written a heartwrenching but sometimes plodding, memoir about the loss of her son to a terminal blood disorder. Shane was a teenager who suffered from mild mental retardation. He had a sweet, guileless disposition that endeared him to everyone he met. During his senior year of high school, he was diagnosed with aplastic anemia, a rare and often fatal condition that prevents the body from producing enough new blood cells. Waiting in the hospital for the bone marrow transplant that could save Shane's life, Bartlett gave him a journal to record his thoughts and feelings. Once his family realized that Shane would not get a donor match in time, they began to come to terms with losing him. He took a trip to New York courtesy of the Starlight Children's Foundation and, after coming home, died. Bartlett%E2%80%94who returned to her freelance writing career%E2%80%94has crafted a careful account of Shane's battle with the disease. Although his trip to New York is bittersweet and his untimely death tragic, the book lacks a compelling narrative arc. Instead, it only offers readers a window into Shane's slow decline and a few brief moments of hope. This alone cannot sustain the book, although readers will truly feel for Shane and his family.