"...excellent..." --Choices - Choice on Dying Newsletter "Toombs, Barnard, and Carson have organized and edited a valuable series of papers that provide a rare perspective on the impact of chronic illness. Beginning with the person who is experiencing the chronic condition, they are able to weave an important blend of personal, social, and policy themes." --Choice "This volume of collected essays is a solid contribution to the medical humanities literature on chronic illness... the contributors have produced a cohesive, systematic, and sensitive examination of issues in chronic illness and disability." --Medical Humanities Review "Although it may seem to be intended largely for health care providers, this thought-provoking volume has much that will interest a wider lay audience." --Medical and Health Annual An often moving exploration of the human, moral, and policy aspects of a health issue that affects each of us. Through first-person accounts and the perspectives of literature, medicine, philosophy, and religion, this book explores what it means to live with chronic illness and the implications of this experience for social policy, health care, bioethics, and the professions.