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What Members Thought
The hubster and I had dinner with one of our favorite couples last night, and I started trying to describe why they should read Henrietta Lacks. This isn't my normal sort of reading in any way. I don't really love nonfiction. I have successfully avoided almost everything scientific (with the possible exception of medical interest stories and information) since undergrad. And yet this is a fantastic read. Cellular biology writ large, through both the science and the human aspects of what the fiel
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I liked the book, although I think that a deeper exploration of consent and medical research would have been interesting. I would have liked to read more about the history of nonconsensual medical research and experimentation, particularly as it relates to race. Skloot did an effective job of weaving together the narrative about Henrietta, Henrietta's descendants, and her own journey researching and writing this book. She also included a lot of the scientific information necessary to grasp what
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Beautiful, endearing narrative. You will love the Lacks family, especially Deborah.
This was fantastic. The author is telling two decades-long stories here: the personal story of Henrietta Lacks and her family (from the 1920s to the 2000s) and the scientific story of the "immortal" cells of Henrietta Lacks and their effeect on medical research and medical ethics. Both stories are told clearly and well.
It was a bit off, somehow, to have these stories of a black family told (with their speech patterns and accents) by a highly-educated white woman. I wonder if the family has read ...more
It was a bit off, somehow, to have these stories of a black family told (with their speech patterns and accents) by a highly-educated white woman. I wonder if the family has read ...more
I can't believe how much I enjoyed this book--science, sadly, isn't usually my thing, but this book was a page-turner. Skloot did an amazing job of painting a picture of this family and showing us what happens at the intersection of science, class, race, and poverty.
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Oct 30, 2011
Loretta
rated it
it was amazing
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review of another edition
Shelves:
my-book-club-reads
Brilliant, beautiful, necessary book. I loved it, my book club loved it, and I am so pleased my invisible friends recommended it to me as I otherwise would likely not have picked it up, as I am still somewhat afraid of non-fiction (although improving by leaps and bounds).
Cannot recommend this enough. One of my tops reads of the year, and maybe ever.
Cannot recommend this enough. One of my tops reads of the year, and maybe ever.
Fascinating and well-researched account of HeLa and mid-century medical research. Reading this book is as depressing as it is important.
Jul 28, 2011
Nicole
rated it
really liked it
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review of another edition
Shelves:
nonfiction,
read-in-2011
Dec 14, 2011
Corinne
rated it
really liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
economic-justice,
racialjustice
Nov 12, 2012
Cristella
rated it
liked it
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
nonfiction,
audiobooks
