Rebecca Skloot's book weaves the story of the life of African American woman, Henrietta Lacks (1920-1951) and her family in Virginia, US, with that of Henrietta's remarkable 'immortal' cells which have provided the backbone of pioneering medical research. The book was rated top shelf by members.
It engendered a robust discussion at our meeting about the medical breakthroughs wrought by the so-called HeLa cells for the good of millions of people, and the ethical controversies which have also ensued. The book caused us to consider our rights as individuals, now that medical research's access to our cells means access to our genetic code and that of our children's.
We admired Skloot's writing style and her tenacity in gaining the trust of the Lacks family over a period of 10 years to tell their story accurately in a way that is unvarnished but faithful to their trust in her. We were also impressed by the way she describes the complex science in the book, making it easily understandable by the general reader.
Members also liked the book's multi-layers; how the book goes beyond the story of the family to tell the stories of the lab researchers who were able to invent ways to culture cells in the lab successfully for the first time and to find ways to package and preserve these cells for distribution to researchers across the world. We were also engrossed by how the initial free distribution of HeLa cells eventually became a multi-million dollar industry on an industrial scale - and the question of whether members of Henrietta's family should have benefitted.
The history of what happened to Henrietta's children following her death focused us on the human heart of the book which in the hands of another writer might otherwise have been lost.
An excellent unmissable read.
Who is Rebecca Skloot?
Rebecca Skloot, 46, is an American freelance science writer.
The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was her first book and stayed on The New York Times bestseller list for more than six years from its publication in 2009. She won a fistful of awards for the book, including the National Academies of Science Communication Awards.
The book was subsequently made into a movie staring Oprah Winfrey as Deborah Lacks, Henrietta's daughter.
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