Reviews tagging 'Violence'

The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot

32 reviews

bearikatherika's review

emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad medium-paced

4.5

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Child abuse, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Terminal illness, Violence, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Racism

Minor: Drug abuse, Incest, and Infidelity

marioncromb's review against another edition

challenging dark informative reflective fast-paced

4.0

Easy to read, very informative. Empathetic and meticulously researched. Tells the story of Lacks' family alternating with the story of her cells. Maybe a little long with unneccessary detail. Quite US centric - would have been nice to know about laws surrounding tissues etc worldwide for comparison.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer, Medical content, and Death of parent

Moderate: Death, Racism, Grief, Medical trauma, and Classism

Minor: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Child abuse, Child death, Chronic illness, Incest, Infidelity, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Terminal illness, Torture, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Murder, Pregnancy, and Sexual harassment

arttichokedipp's review

challenging informative sad slow-paced

2.25

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Adult/minor relationship, Alcoholism, Body horror, Domestic abuse, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Forced institutionalization, Police brutality, Medical content, Grief, Medical trauma, Death of parent, Pregnancy, and Classism

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.

---

Content Warnings

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

Moderate: Alcoholism, Murder, and Injury/Injury detail

joyfromhope's review

emotional informative medium-paced

3.75

This book charts the parallel stories of science and the advancements made using HELA cells (and the changes in expectation/policy/etc. regarding privacy and consent) along side the history of the Lacks family. 
The science parts and the parts specifically about Henrietta are fascinating and it is eye-opening to see what was acceptable in the past (and what is still acceptable in the science community today). However, some of the parts spent documenting the current Lacks family seemed somewhat out of place and rambling at times. 

---

Content Warnings

Minor: Rape, Sexual violence, and Violence

isabeldotml's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Violence, Medical content, and Medical trauma

Moderate: Child abuse and Child death

moniipeters's review against another edition

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

5.0

---

Content Warnings

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

1_and_owenly's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Child abuse, Child death, Emotional abuse, Incest, Racism, Violence, Medical content, Death of parent, Murder, and Classism

hhwanghyunjin's review

emotional informative medium-paced

5.0

I recently finished "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" and I have to say, it is one of the most fascinating and thought-provoking books I have read in a long time. The book tells the story of Henrietta Lacks, a woman whose cells were taken without her knowledge or consent in 1951 and used in scientific research that led to many groundbreaking discoveries, including the polio vaccine.

The author, Rebecca Skloot, does an excellent job of weaving together the story of Henrietta and her family with the larger scientific and ethical issues surrounding the use of human tissues in research. Skloot's writing is clear and engaging, and she manages to make complex scientific concepts accessible to the layperson.

What really sets this book apart, however, is its deeply human element. Skloot's relationship with Henrietta's daughter, Deborah, and the Lacks family is a major part of the book, and it is clear that Skloot cares deeply about telling their story with sensitivity and respect. As a history teacher, I appreciate how Skloot situates Henrietta's story within the broader context of medical experimentation on African Americans throughout history.

Overall, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" is a must-read for anyone interested in the history of medicine, ethics, or social justice. I cannot recommend it highly enough. 5/5 stars.


"If you want to see your grandmother alive, you need to come home right now." - The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, p. 74.

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Cancer and Medical trauma

Moderate: Racism, Sexual assault, and Violence

Minor: Cursing and Incest

deenene's review against another edition

emotional informative slow-paced

5.0

---

Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault and Violence

Moderate: Racism