It was a journey that parents hope to avoid: a twin son born with a congenital heart defect; a fateful decision to take a family trip abroad, and an emergency hospitalization stranding them – in the PICU and a friend’s home – on the other side of the world with no obvious way home; and all the while, living in the uncertainty that comes with a congenital, life-threatening condition.

But More Than We Expected is not a tragedy, which is why we at CPN love and recommend it. James’ lens on his family’s experience offers valuable lessons about the privilege of parenthood and the practice of medicine; the mysterious ways in which the body forms and grows, giving life; how we find a pathway to live with our decisions, even if the consequences are beyond our control; and our extraordinary capacity—when something goes wrong—to compensate and heal.

More Than We Expected is a story of finding strength in the most unexpected places. Our children have a special ability to reveal the goodness in the world—their eyes a window to a life full of wonder. Like them, this book is a vivid reminder of what it means to be human—a miraculous, inexplicable gift, however fleeting.