Still Alice

I cannot wait to share Still Alice by Lisa Genova with you!

Goodreads Stats

Why I Read This Book/How I Heard About It

This is an odd case because I actually saw this movie several years ago and I loved it. When I saw the book in the Libby app, I immediately checked it out. I thought the movie was so well done, I had to see if it followed the book at all.

And, on a deeper level, my fascination with Still Alice has always been due to the fact that Alzheimer's runs in my family.

Goodreads Summary

Still Alice is a compelling debut novel about a 50-year-old woman's sudden descent into early onset Alzheimer's disease, written by first-time author Lisa Genova, who holds a Ph.D. in neuroscience from Harvard University.

Alice Howland, happily married with three grown children and a house on the Cape, is a celebrated Harvard professor at the height of her career when she notices a forgetfulness creeping into her life. As confusion starts to cloud her thinking and her memory begins to fail her, she receives a devastating diagnosis: early onset Alzheimer's disease. Fiercely independent, Alice struggles to maintain her lifestyle and live in the moment, even as her sense of self is being stripped away. In turns heartbreaking, inspiring and terrifying, Still Alice captures in remarkable detail what's it's like to literally lose your mind...

First Impressions

The first thing I noticed is that the movie was pulled straight from the book. I went back and watched the movie again after I finished the book and only noticed minor changes to small details. Otherwise, the movie was nearly flawless in representing the content in the book. That is so rare.

Final Thoughts

I have done the DNA test and I know I have the marker for Alzheimer's, which doesn't necessarily mean it will actually develop. But it's a possibility. I guess the most curious part of me wanted to read about the symptoms - things I should maybe look out for in the distant future. And I also just wanted to know what it feels like.

I think Lisa Genova did an amazing job describing the whole experience, to where the reader can feel what Alice is feeling because of the way the words are so meticulously crafted. This book is heartbreaking, but so beautiful at the same time.

The overall impression I felt as I finished the book was gratitude for everything I am able to enjoy now and in the future. But also for the fact that I see now that I'm with the perfect man to care for me if I ever go through this in the future. He's the kindest, most attentive, sweetest caregiver to me even now...how much more so will he be when we've been together for 40 years? Thank God for him. And for all the love we get to experience as a family right now.

Rating on Goodreads

I rated this book 5 out of 5 stars.

My rating method:

• I rarely rate books 5 stars. I save this for the absolute best books I've read. You know the ones...the ones that you can't get out of your head, even after you've finished them. The ones you think about for weeks afterwards.

• If a book is really, really good, I'll give it 4 stars. If you see a 4-star rating from me, I'd definitely recommend it to you to read.

• If it's just OK, it gets 3 stars. Basically, it means I could take it or leave it. I'd probably read it again because it wasn't terrible. But not like a favorite or anything.

• If I rate it 1 or 2 stars, I would not recommend anyone read it. It either didn't hold my interest or I couldn't relate to the characters/plot.