U.S. Reviews

“Fitzhugh is in fine comic form and zanier than ever. The Organ Grinders is a great chance to catch a glimpse of a truly unique and talented young writer….[Fitzhugh has a] fearless sense of humor… Slapstick of Keatonian proportions meshes with…a solid grasp of the absurd to form a laugh-out-loud read… His wit and style are as compelling as his tightly wound thriller plots, and his thoughts on the world we live in are fascinating and, often, spot on…the result is an awe-inspiring feat.”
— The Washington Post

“The Organ Grinders, is hilarious, but it can also make you gasp with horror; it’s based on the… premise that rich Americans in need of various body parts will be buying them from poor people in foreign countries. The environmental stuff is terrific, and the humor is completely off-the-wall.
— Molly Ivins, Fort Worth Star Telegram

“… a funny book that satirizes advances in biotechnology…As in all good comic novels, the characters’ lives intertwine in a satirical manner throughout the plot, culminating in an incredible scene at the baboon organ harvest in the backwoods of Mississippi…”
— The Rocky Mountain News (Denver) 8/98

“If Michael Crichton and Carl Hiaasen collaborated on a book about the organ transplant and genetic engineering industries, the result might look a lot like this very bizarre novel…Fortunately, it’s not necessary to wait for Crichton and Hiaasen to embark on such a collaboration. Fitzhugh has already done it…It’s not easy walking the tightrope between medical thrillers ala Crichton and absurdist black comedy in the Hiaasen mold, but Fitzhugh manages it smoothly. Expect fans of both styles to applaud his dexterity.”
— Booklist 8/98

“The background subject matter is fascinating, and Fitzhugh smoothly weaves it into his story line… [his] wry style is amusing…some passages are laugh-out-loud funny…The Organ Grinders works as both a plea for planetary sanity and as a…witty novel…an entertaining and thought-provoking read, as Fitzhugh melds deadly seriousness and satire to keep the customer satisfied.”
— CNN.com 9/98

“If there’s anybody currently working hard at resuscitating the art of political incorrectness, it’s Fitzhugh…[The Organ Grinders features]…laugh-out-loud incidents that at times alarmingly mirror today’s TV news.”
— Library Journal 8/98

The Organ Grinders was a Borders Books “Original Voices” selection for September 1998.

My favorite bad review (from reader reviews posted on Amazon.com)

A reader from Oregon , August 7, 1999:
WASN’T WHAT I EXPECTED. I FOUND THIS BOOK TO BE DEPRESSING, NOT FUNNY. I was under the impression this was going to be a light and fun(ny) read but it turned out to be more doomsday. MONEY ALWAYS WINS OUT! IRRegardless (sic). I feel as reviewer [Baird] from Providence, Rhode Island “…but the topic is so serious to me that I did not find it pleasing to think about.” The first chapter was good…as was the postscript “Man has lost the capacity to foresee and to forestall. He will end by destroying the Earth.” Dr. Albert Schweitzer I totally agree with Dr. AS.