“Exploring an issue usually left to philosophers and economists, Kieran Healy goes beyond ethical and economic debates and investigates the organizational and cultural contexts behind people’s motivations to donate ‘human goods.’ Whether enough of these much needed goods are provided depends less on potential donors’ altruistic motives than on the structure and practices of the organizations handling the donations. Elegantly argued and well-written, Last Best Gifts makes a landmark contribution to our understanding of the social foundation of the moral order of exchange.”--Jens Beckert, Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies
— Jens Beckert
“In Last Best Gifts, Kieran Healy offers a timely, sophisticated, and original analysis of the complex organizational terrain of blood and organ donation. In doing so, he unpacks the crucial role that organizations and institutions play in creating the contexts for, and the meanings of, giving. His analysis suggests that the relationship between gifts and commodities, between giving and selling, is more complex than many scholars acknowledge.”--Wendy Espeland, Northwestern University
— Wendy Espeland
"As an economic sociologist, Healy adds important dimensions to the intensifying debate over organ procurement."
— Virginia Postrel, New York Times Book Review