Still Alice by Lisa Genova

This review was first published on 2-22-2010

 Lisa Genova, author of "Still Alice" has a degree in Bio-psychology and she holds a PHD in Neuroscience from Harvard. She is a member of the Dementia Advocacy, Support Network International and Dementia USA. (from her biography on Amazon)  It is with this background that she brings us her first novel "Still Alice."

     The only regret I have about this book is that I didn't read it while my Mother-in-law was alive. Anne was diagnosed with dementia and much of Alice's story could have been Anne's story. They were both in education and put great priority in education, the discouragement they both felt at realizing what this disease would eventually do to them.The difference between their stories is that Genova took the AD examples of many people and created one person.

                 She gives us a personal look at this disease with some very understandable scientific information and also adds the emotional side of Alice's story. Looking at her emotional, mental state and also the emotional roller coaster of Alice's husband and adult children.

     You might think, with this subject matter the book would be dark and depressing. It is sad but not dark. 

      My book club read this in October of 2009. When I read I have a tendency to "flag" my pages. With those wonderful 'post-it' flags. I usually flag great quotes or just things I think are interesting. My book club friend Debra always looks at my book at our meeting and laughingly tells us whether I thought the book was good by how many flags I have.

     As I was looking through my copy of "Still Alice" I read the flagged pages again. One of them I thought was very interesting and funny. Page58, Alice is talking to her Doctor. "She looked him directly in the eye. A colleague of hers had once told her that eye contact with another person for more than six seconds without looking away or blinking revealed a desire for either sex or murder. She reflexively hadn't believed this, but it had intrigued her enough to test it out on various friends and strangers. To her surprise, with the exception of John [her husband] one of them always looked away before the six seconds was up.  Dr. Davis looked down at his desk after four seconds."

     I challenge you to try this and see what you find out!!  I highly recommend this book.

Even with AD - Alice is "Still Alice."