Eye of the Beholder: True Stories of People with Facial Differences »

Laura Greenwald is manager of physician & consumer communication at Cleveland Clinic. Eye of the Beholder is her first book.

Featuring true stories of people whose faces have been disfigured as a result of cancer, trauma, or a birth defect, Eye of the Beholder explores what it’s like to try and live an ordinary life behind a remarkable face.

Eye of the Beholder features the stories of Melissa, who has undergone forty-two surgeries in nineteen years to try to correct issues affecting her face since birth; Dr. Thomas Cowper, who specializes in crafting prosthetic eyes; and Jack Moyer, who lost his jaw as a result of cancer treatment; and many, many others, including family members of those with facial differences.

Although there are commonalities in every story, particularly regarding stigma, each person faces unique challenges and realizes different outcomes. These dramatic stories also feature medical and scientific advances, as well as the history of facial plastic surgery and face transplant. It is an excellent resource for people with facial differences and their families.

Foreword vii

Introduction xi

Chapter 1 Nothing Is Normal 1

Chapter 2 What Is a Face? 21

Chapter 3 Where Thou Leadest Me 33

Chapter 4 The Gunner with the Silver Mask 55

Chapter 5 The Dog Ate My Eye 67

Chapter 6 Little Prizefighter 83

Chapter 7 The Viking 109

Chapter 8 I Gotta Be Me 123

Chapter 9 Not Just Another Pretty Face 143

Chapter 10 Finding Kim 167

Chapter 11 Our Child, Our Heart 187

Chapter 12 A Posse ad Esse: From Possibility to Actuality 207

Chapter 13 Living Between Worlds 221

Chapter 14 Give and Take 241

Resource 255

Chapter References 261