New York: Random House, (2001) dj. Hardcover first edition - "While reporting a story from India, a New York television journalist has his left hand eaten by a lion; millions of TV viewers witness the accident. In Boston, a renowned hand surgeon awaits the opportunity to perform the nations first hand transplant." Although this novel seems at first to be a satire or a romantic farce, it is, in the final analysis, an emotionally moving exploration of Irving's "recurring themes - loss, grief and love as redemption." 313 pp. ISBN: 0-375-506276.