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lil_nuke23's review against another edition
4.0
another fast read. Very sad and depressing, but true to life for those struggling with Alzheimer's. Well researched.
deathbytbrandcoffee's review against another edition
5.0
a beautifully written, remarkable story. i can't recommend it enough, i cannot fathom the courage it would take to survive such a cruel disease
chewedgum's review against another edition
4.0
Wow. I watched my grandmother disappear into Alzheimer's, so this was an especially heartbreaking read. I appreciated getting a glimpse of what it must have been like for her to lose herself.
I loved Alice's specialty in psycholinguistics and the insights it provided into Alzheimer's. I thought the book was well-written and that it is a must read.
I loved Alice's specialty in psycholinguistics and the insights it provided into Alzheimer's. I thought the book was well-written and that it is a must read.
alongapath's review against another edition
3.0
Told through the perspective of an early-onset Alzheimer's patient, the novel describes the fairly quick decline of Alice. In a matter of 18 months, Alice goes from being a tenured Harvard professor to being a lost and confused, mentally-ill patient who requires constant supervision and care. Since the narrator is Alice, the reader is taken step by step through the mental anguish and fear that she experiences, both in losing her capacity to think clearly and in the impact she is having on her family.
Through her medical research, Lisa Genova found a fair amount of information and support for the caregivers of Alzheimer's patients but none which described the symptoms from the perspective of the patient. This novel allows us to see Alice struggle to follow conversations and follow simple written instructions. It delves into the anger at her inability to do daily tasks and thoughts of suicide. She listens to her family and doctors discuss her actions and prognosis as if she is not in the room. Decisions which concern her seem to be taking place without her input, although she is told over and over that she was consulted but just doesn't remember.
As with all mental illnesses, there is a stigma with having Alzheimer's and Alice is keenly aware that she is being avoided. She learns to tell people about her illness and begins a support group for others like her.
I have also read [b:Left Neglected|8492768|Left Neglected|Lisa Genova|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1285414621s/8492768.jpg|11606373] and I found SA to follow the same formulaic style. Both novels show a woman at the top of her game, wanting for nothing yet not appreciating her family, her career or her health. After a few chapters describing her frenzied, self-important life, a diagnosis is made and everything in her life changes. Somehow with both books, despite the desperate situations, Genova leaves us on a positive note.
Through her medical research, Lisa Genova found a fair amount of information and support for the caregivers of Alzheimer's patients but none which described the symptoms from the perspective of the patient. This novel allows us to see Alice struggle to follow conversations and follow simple written instructions. It delves into the anger at her inability to do daily tasks and thoughts of suicide. She listens to her family and doctors discuss her actions and prognosis as if she is not in the room. Decisions which concern her seem to be taking place without her input, although she is told over and over that she was consulted but just doesn't remember.
As with all mental illnesses, there is a stigma with having Alzheimer's and Alice is keenly aware that she is being avoided. She learns to tell people about her illness and begins a support group for others like her.
I have also read [b:Left Neglected|8492768|Left Neglected|Lisa Genova|http://d.gr-assets.com/books/1285414621s/8492768.jpg|11606373] and I found SA to follow the same formulaic style. Both novels show a woman at the top of her game, wanting for nothing yet not appreciating her family, her career or her health. After a few chapters describing her frenzied, self-important life, a diagnosis is made and everything in her life changes. Somehow with both books, despite the desperate situations, Genova leaves us on a positive note.
mtiscareno's review against another edition
5.0
Really intricate, beautiful story, told from the viewpoint of Alice, a Harvard professor who is diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer's. I think I cried close to 5 times when reading this novel. At times, my heart ached for Alice, for her children, for the loss of the very things she spent her life doing-- her intelligence, her career. You can't help but think about what your life would feel like were you in her shoes.
lu2cook's review against another edition
4.0
I couldn't put this book down. It tells the story of an accomplished and well regarded academic and her journey with Alzheimers disease. The author illuminates the impact on the family and those closest to Alice. This is a serious, grave and somehwat mysterious subject. Most inpsiring was a talk Alice gave to a conference on Alzheimers.
jmcglo's review against another edition
5.0
I found this book both heartbreaking and riveting. It tapped into some of my own greatest fears, but there was a beauty to it that was powerful.
ogranny's review against another edition
5.0
I was profoundly affected by this book. I supposed some of that is because I am 53 and it felt like something that could happen to me or someone I know. I forget sometimes when I am in the presence of someone with a mental illness that inside their symptoms, they are still there. I won't forget again.
This reminded me a little of the book "Flowers for Algernon." The moral being, we all just live in the moment and should appreciate the moment for what is is, rather than look to the future or past.
This reminded me a little of the book "Flowers for Algernon." The moral being, we all just live in the moment and should appreciate the moment for what is is, rather than look to the future or past.
mary_kurtz's review against another edition
4.0
This book addressed my fears of dementia someday occurring, but it also taught me so much of what a person with Alzheimer's experiences.
janagram1's review against another edition
4.0
I read Still Alice in a day and a half and dreamed about it the following night. As the reader, you walk with Alice, a Harvard psychology professor, from her occasional lapse of memory – forgetting a word, or what something on her to do list meant – to confusion in a conversation to getting lost in her own neighborhood to not recognizing her own husband and children. It is a gripping book that gives a more compassionate understanding for people suffering from Alzheimer's and their caregivers. If you are looking for a book that sucks you in and makes you think, this is it.