Reviews tagging 'Physical abuse'

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

36 reviews

lydia_smith's review

challenging informative reflective slow-paced

4.5

Fascinating read about how medical science is deeply personal. Henrietta Lacks' cells made mind-bogglingly massive contributions to science, and there was a very real, very human, family behind all of it. This made me think, and I even learned some molecular biology along the way.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing and Medical trauma

Moderate: Death, Sexual assault, and Physical abuse

jodean's review against another edition

dark emotional informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Forced institutionalization, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Death, Ableism, Racism, Terminal illness, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Pregnancy, Mental illness, Medical trauma, Medical content, Injury/Injury detail, Incest, Gore, Grief, Abandonment, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Cancer, and Blood

Moderate: Physical abuse, Infertility, Cursing, Sexual assault, Slavery, and Infidelity

Minor: Kidnapping, Gun violence, and Suicide

emilymhb's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.25

Wow, wow, wow. I am not normally a nonfiction gal but this book blew me away. I am so thankful that I get to live in a world where HeLa cells were discovered, despite the personal cost her family incurred. This book was beautiful.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Pedophilia, Child abuse, Child death, Medical content, Physical abuse, Cancer, Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Adult/minor relationship, Incest, Body horror, Death, Death of parent, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Torture, and Violence

Moderate: Injury/Injury detail, Alcoholism, and Murder

kk_gotit_goinon's review

challenging dark emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

5.0

This book is a must read for anyone who wants to go into science or medicine. The wrongs can't be undone but by bringing it to light we can create better scientists, doctors, and people in general. 

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Content Warnings

Minor: Classism, Domestic abuse, Medical content, Physical abuse, Terminal illness, Child abuse, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Incest, Medical trauma, Mental illness, and Racism

eegrasse's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

4.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Medical trauma, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Terminal illness, Classism, Domestic abuse, Incest, Racism, Racial slurs, Child abuse, Child death, Death of parent, Medical content, Physical abuse, Cancer, Forced institutionalization, Infidelity, Gun violence, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Suicide

moniipeters's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Medical content, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Mental illness, Sexual harassment, Domestic abuse, Incest, Racism, Violence, Abandonment, Ableism, Alcoholism, Blood, Cancer, Chronic illness, Death, Emotional abuse, Forced institutionalization, Grief, Infidelity, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Medical trauma, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Sexual violence, Cursing, Drug abuse, Alcohol, Child abuse, and Child death

jbro12's review

challenging emotional hopeful informative sad medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Mental illness, Physical abuse, Death, Racism, Medical trauma, Medical content, Forced institutionalization, and Child abuse

kirstenpod_'s review

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical content, Racism, Death, Cancer, Forced institutionalization, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Alcohol, Domestic abuse, Death of parent, Terminal illness, and Child abuse

Minor: Incest, Physical abuse, Slavery, Drug abuse, Mental illness, and Murder

martha_is_reading's review against another edition

I was enjoying the book and found the history of the HeLa cells fascinating; while the treatment of Henrietta Lacks and her family was sad to listen to. I would have carried on but about a quarter of the way through there were a lot of graphic descriptions of the physical and sexual violence that Henrietta’s children were subjected to after her death and I just found it too much 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Physical abuse, Death, Medical content, Cancer, Medical trauma, Sexual harassment, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, and Terminal illness

graceburke's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

5.0

One of, if not the most impactful book I've ever read. Rebecca Skloot is a thoughtful and thorough writer as she tells the story of Henrietta, her family, and her cells. I knew very little of Henrietta and her story when I started. I'm not very knowledgable about science in general, let alone cell culture , but this book was extremely accessible. Moving between telling the past life of Henrietta, the present life of her children, specifically her daughter Deborah, and the immortal life of her cells, Skloot shares the horrors and racism of the world through medical practices and the treatment of the Lacks family. She forces you to think about the morality of different medical practices through an in depth exploration of the advancements of medicine on the backs of Black and Brown people. Where does the line between public responsibility and personal rights stand? Do the ends justify the means? Is fiscal compensation enough of a form of reparations? 
The story of Henrietta and her family is complex, Deborah would be one of the first people to admit such. It's hard and harrowing. The duality of distrust for the abuse their family endured and the recognition that it was Lacks' cells that allowed for the saving of millions of lives and counting globally is not lost on them. 
I gasped, cried, and laughed. Deborah and Skloot's relationship is something I will be thinking about for a long time. I'm so grateful the Lacks' story has finally been shared. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Racism, Grief, Medical content, Medical trauma, Classism, Death, and Cancer

Moderate: Addiction, Child abuse, Child death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Ableism, Terminal illness, and Miscarriage