It was originally published in Australia by Heinemann, and later in the US by William Morrow under the title The Sun in My Hands.
A reviewer in The Age was impressed by the novel: "'A novel built entirely around a social injustice is a rarity, but with competence and courage Dymphna Cusack, in Say No to Death, has presented the subject of the tuberculosis patient and, in a story of heroism, pathos and great sympathy, put the case for the sick civilian at the mercy of a Government — a Government and a people — who respond to the needs of the scourge of war so much more readily than to the scourge of illness...This is a book well worth reading, as much for the story as for the message it carries.
"[2] A reviewer in The Mercury had a similar view: "In painting her characters all typically Australian - Miss Cusack has reached unusual literary heights.
The unexpected, courageous ending gives the final touch to a novel which must rank high in Australian literature.
"[3] The novel was also translated into Russian (1961), Norwegian (1963), Lithuanian (1963), Romanian (1965), Hungarian (1968), Czech (1969), German (1970), and Georgian (1975).