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The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

Rebecca Skloot

Discussion: May/June 2010

Discussion leader: LynnB

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May/June 2010

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks - Rebecca Skloot
By LynnB · 18 posts · 39 views

last updated Aug 31, 2013 12:15PM

The Devil's Star by Jo Nesbo
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last updated Jan 05, 2013 05:30PM

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What Members Thought

Aug 17, 2010 Lisa Roberts rated it it was amazing

Shelves: audio

I loved this book. I didn't want to read it but it kept popping up everyone in my book world. It was on every book podcast, one of amazon's best of the month, then best of the year so far, recommended on Book on the Nightstand podcast, NPR, New York Times, etc. I finally decided it was time to take the plunge, but I was not looking forward to it. The subject matter sounded boring. Henrietta Lacks was a poor black woman who died at the age of 31 in 1951 of cervical cancer. Her cells were used to ...more

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Oct 17, 2010 Amy rated it it was amazing

Shelves: _own-home-library, non-fiction, all-time-favorite, busy-as-a-bee-books-group, read-in-2010

As a person who isn't particularly interested in medical non-fiction, I found myself really engaged in this non-fiction account of HeLa cells and the woman whose cells have had such an impact on modern medicine. I'm not a huge non-fiction reader (primarily because I find it difficult to find compelling non-fiction) but this particular book is fantastic. It's very engaging, very accessible and not at all 'over my head.' The mix of science and human interest was blended so effortlessly by Rebecca As a person who isn't particularly interested in medical non-fiction, I found myself really engaged in this non-fiction account of HeLa cells and the woman whose cells have had such an impact on modern medicine. I'm not a huge non-fiction reader (primarily because I find it difficult to find compelling non-fiction) but this particular book is fantastic. It's very engaging, very accessible and not at all 'over my head.' The mix of science and human interest was blended so effortlessly by Rebecca Skloot. I was amazed at how readable the medical aspects were for me. How Skloot made those sections interesting and relevant to a non-science fan like me!

The human interest pieces were just heartbreaking for me. The honest look at poverty, racism, education and crime was very well done. Skloot's skill at weaving these more heartfelt pieces with the necessary biographical, medical and ethical pieces was just incredible! It came off so effortlessly to me as a reader.

I felt bad for Henrietta's children and the impact of her death and all that came after that for each of them. They did not/have not have/had easy lives. I definitely think that the anger that they expressed repeatedly through the book was directly related to poverty and a lack of education. It came off as almost being greed in some instances in the book but I think that it really comes down to the cycle of poverty and abuse. The family couldn't understand any of this to any level of depth which I think made it impossible for them to understand the nuances that are at play when it comes to compensation, ethics, etc. In the end, I am thankful that the Lacks had Rebecca Skloot in their life to help them gain a better understanding of things. It seemed to me that once the understanding was there, the anger began to dissipate. And they were able to move beyond the anger into understanding and pride that their mother's cells were able to help so many people.

I found a great deal of the socioeconomic aspects of the book just heartbreaking because of how difficult it is for someone surrounded by poverty, abuse and dysfunction to make the right choices that will lead down the right path. It happens but it is RARE. As a former social worker who worked with many families and individuals that struggled with escaping the cycle of poverty and abuse, it's very very very difficult even when opportunities come about. It's difficult to step out of your comfort zone (no matter how dysfunctional, depressing or heartbreaking it may be) to try to change yourself or your circumstances. I also think that any compensation for the family would not have actually help them economically or otherwise. They really needed to heal as a family and get perspective on something that was outside of their understanding.

In the end, I absolutely enjoyed the reading of this book and recommend it wholeheartedly. It's a fantastic book that will stay with you after you close the book. It will make you think. It will give you perspective. It's just wonderful. ...more

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Jan 31, 2011 The Sassy Bookworm rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Amazing read!

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Dec 27, 2009 Melissa rated it really liked it

Shelves: she-blinded-me-with-science, overdue-reads

Finally unearthed this and read it.

A very moving book about not only Henrietta but her daughter Deborah and how not knowing or understanding what exactly happened to her mother affected her life. And the very questionable ethics decisions (or non-decisions) made by scientists. How hard would it be for a pharmaceutical company, given the amount of money made off of discoveries made possibly only through the use of HeLa cells, to cut a check to the family?

In an interesting aside, last week there w ...more

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Apr 24, 2011 Sera rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: audio, library, non-fiction

A compelling read that is multi-faceted in nature. First, there is the story of Henrietta Lacks, a woman with cervical cancer who's cells are taken without her consent and then used in science, research and otherwise, from the 1950s until today. Second, there is the theme of ethics as it relates to science and how the state of patient rights has evolved (or not) since Henrietta's time. Lastly, the book takes a look at the family that Henrietta left behind and how their loss of their mother, wife A compelling read that is multi-faceted in nature. First, there is the story of Henrietta Lacks, a woman with cervical cancer who's cells are taken without her consent and then used in science, research and otherwise, from the 1950s until today. Second, there is the theme of ethics as it relates to science and how the state of patient rights has evolved (or not) since Henrietta's time. Lastly, the book takes a look at the family that Henrietta left behind and how their loss of their mother, wife, etc. impacted their lives, together with their living in the shadow of Henrietta's cells that most everyone has been able to make money on except for them.

Skloots does an excellent job of interweaving all of the aforementioned storylines by taking a chronological look at them in blocks of time. She also addresses the less prominent, but no less important theme of racism, in that many of the early test subjects involved African-Americans. Recall that the Tuskagee Experiment also occurred within the same decade as when Lack's tissue was taken. However, I believe that the saddest story of all in the book is the one of Elsie, Lack's eldest daughter, who ends up in a black mental health hospital. The topice of mental health during this time in history would have likely merited a book of its own. The sad thing is that all of these events happened not so long ago, and it wasn't until the late 1970s that reforms started to take place.

This book covers so much from an information perspective as to a personal one. It is truly a fascinating read, and one that I would recommend to anyone who seeks to understand a critical issue in our society that is still ongoing today. Frankly, I didn't truly appreciate the complexity of the issue of consent as it relates to the use of our cells, etc. or how the courts' decision to limit patient's rights led to the commercialization, and ultimately, monopolization of the results of the scientific research that could not have been conducted without those patients. This book will have me thinking for awhile. Definitely check it out.

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Jan 16, 2010 Julie rated it really liked it

I'm glad I bought this book, rather than the Kindle version. It was full of interesting information. I do kind of wish there was a little more science, but I'm a scientist, so that may just be me. It was really more about Henrietta's children and family than anything else, though everything was covered from her childhood, illness, and scientific controversies. I actually have a lot to say about the family, but that really doesn't have anything to do with the actual book, which was wonderful! ...more

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Apr 18, 2010 Barbara rated it liked it

The story of the poor southern black woman whose cells were taken from her without her knowledge or consent. This book tells the story of her life and her cells which have been responsible for countless medical advances in the last century. It was fascinating at first but I lost interest about half way through and haven't been compelled to finish. ...more

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