The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks
There are two main pieces to this book. It covers the life of this African American woman from the 50’s who dies of cervical cancer, and the scientists who took some of her cells without her permission. It describes how these cells went on to be used in all realms of science; from helping to discover a polio vaccine to research for AIDS, cancer, and DNA mapping.
The book goes through all the science with these cells, but then comes full circle and comes back around to the author finding the family of Henrietta and how they were so tainted by the whole saga. They never saw a dime from the sale of the cells, they never had health care and were undereducated so they didn’t know how to stand up for themselves. So it delves into the whole process of laws that were created as to what rights we have to our bodies and our cells after we’ve had them taken during medical procedures.
I think the thing I would give the most credit to is the author’s writing style. She did such a good job of taking a subject that some would find boring (the science and the hundreds of interviews and articles) and she wove it all together to make it a wonderful narrative. You felt like you were just reading a story rather than a whole bunch of research pieced together. She did such a great job with all the small nuances of the history that are somewhat side stories, but she intertwines them in so it’s just a flowing read. So I think this could have been a total flop had it not been for her talent.
I really loved the book. I found the family’s history fascinating. It takes you back to a different time when science was still learning the things we consider common knowledge today. It was a really interesting book with the mix of biography and science. I would recommend it to all people who love science and the development of it. These cells have found their way into every part of it. I’d also recommend this novel to somebody who likes history books that are off the beaten path.
Malia's Pizza Rating
A make-your-own pizza bar. There’s a science to making the prefect za!