“Still Alice” by Lisa Genova – Who are you?

We often hear stories about people spiraling away into insanity, with some even witnessing such happenings first-hand. However, it is one of those things a person simply cannot understand without experiencing it; it can be observed and described, but once it actually happens to you, chances are you’ll have a lot of trouble sharing your story.

In any case, in Still Alice by Lisa Genova, we are told such a story from an omniscient perspective as Alice, a fifty year-old woman at the peak of her career and personal life, suddenly has to deal with an early onset of Alzheimer’s disease.

In greater detail, Alice Howland isn’t just any kind of woman; she is a renowned Harvard professor at the climax of her career, has a loving husband, three grown children and a house on the Cape. All in all, about as ideal as a life can ever get.

One day, Alice goes on stage for a lecture, something she does practically every day. This time, however, she inexplicably forgot certain words, as if erased from her mind. Not long after, while going on a morning jog she gets lost in her own neighborhood.

Naturally, she seeks help from a doctor, and the diagnosis is conclusive: an early onset of Alzheimer’s disease. From this point on, Alice and her family struggle to maintain their lives in the face of this devastating disease, but that proves to be increasingly difficult.

My favorite part about the book is the point of view from which it is told: third-person omniscient. We get to experience Alice’s harrowing loss of identity and descent into mental illness from both inside and outside, seeing what she believes is happening and what actually is.

We not only feel the great distress and guilt Alice suffers from knowing what kinds of hardships her disease causes, but also the rollercoaster of hope and desperation the family is riding.

On one hand, this book is about a strong-willed woman who, with the help of her loving family, gives it all she has fighting a condition that will eventually ruin her life. Even though all the odds are stacked against the Howlands, they never give up.

On the other hand, this book is also an exploration of the sense of identity. The question as to what makes us who we are has been debated for ages now, and it feels like Still Alice explores the theory that in the end, it’s our memories that determine the kind of people we are, for each experience we remember serves to shape us into who we are, at least on the conscious plane.

All in all, it is a novel that is equal parts horrifying, inspiring, and eye-opening, and I definitely recommend it for anyone who doesn’t mind slower and more introspective stories.

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Lisa Genova Personal site Lisa Genova is a neuroscientist who graduated from Bates College with a BS in biopsychology as well as a Ph. D. in neuroscience from Harvard University. She is also a respected author in literary circles, having penned Still Alice, Left Neglected, and Love Anthony. She made her author’s debut in 2007, but if her recent efforts are any indicator, there is still much more to come from her.