Holy Cow It's Been Way Too Long!

Greetings Silverfish!

    I would like to apologize for the long absence between book reads, 

but I hope you all had a great summer and read some great books.  

To kick things off for Fall I was thinking we could do a non-fiction pick. 

I already have two great recommendations and would like to get 

at least two or three more from you.  Please leave a comment on this 

post if you have a non-fiction book, memoir, biography, etc.  

After I have five I'll post the poll and we can pick our fourth read.  

Can't wait to see what it will be!

A bookworm blog

Hello lovely ladies!
I'm terrible at posting reviews, but i promise in due time i will! In the interim, here's a link to a site i stumbled upon that has info, reviews and forums for book lovers! Enjoy!

Keep Kalm Read On,
Heather

http://www.shelf-awareness.com/

Quick, Fascinating Read

Henrietta's Immortal Legacy

http://www.olympusfluoview.com/gallery/cells/hela/helacells.html

HeLa Cells

 

      Like Mollie and Liz, I was captivated by the story of HeLa.  It is hard to believe all the amazing things born of Henrietta Lacks' cells.  Scientists would not have been able to make many of the discoveries in medicine that HeLa made possible if not for the use of her cell line.  It is difficult to think about the fact that her family didn't know anything about it for more than 20 years.  Your heart truly goes out to her family and to Henrietta herself, who died under horrific circumstances.

http://americult.wordpress.com/2011/03/12/hela-cells-sienna-1950-present/

HeLa Cells

http://www.microscopyu.com/staticgallery/fluorescence/hela.html

HeLa Cells

           I thought the medical story of the HeLa cell line was so fascinating, I really wished the book had focused on that.  I enjoyed the story about Henrietta's family, but I felt that the author's story got off track while she was writing about the myriad trials of the Lacks family.  I felt like the bulk of the book should have been detailing the amazing discoveries made possible by HeLa.   This story is a great example of human ingenuity and invention and it honors Henrietta's sacrifice and death.

          This book also brought up the ethical dilemma posed by the use of people's cells in research.  I'm not sure what the solution is, but it does seem unfair that pharmaceutical companies make millions off of the discoveries, while the people who furnished them with their cells sometimes can't afford health insurance.  I think the true injustice is more about our society and what it values more than anything else.  People talk about the triumphs of capitalism and the marvels of modern medicine, but what does it say when most people can't afford the medicine or treatment they need to live?  The Lacks family is a perfect example of how people are failed by the system we live in.  What is so scary to people about universal health care when it means that everyone has the basic right to take care of their health and the health of their children?  Something is truly broken when the treatments are available, but people can't access them or afford them.  I think that scientists should be able to use people's tissues and cells if it means they can make medicine to help people in the long run.  However, I also believe that it is a basic human right that those same people should have access to health care when they need it.

The Norse Underworld Goddess, Hela

http://www.marymacgregor-reid.com/popup.php?image_id=156

 

Immortal In More Ways Than One

Like mom, I really enjoyed this book. I thought that the story was an interesting one and one that needed to be told. I wish that there had been more information about Henrietta herself because her story is the one I found the most interesting but I know that that is nearly impossible. I was saddened by the way that she died and how much pain she must have been in. The story of the cells and the way they have shaped and changed the medical world was also very fascinating. I learned a lot about the medical research community that I did not know before. The book really made me think about the issue of who owns bodily tissue once it is removed and what kind of practical solution to this problem could be found.

I think that the main problem is not that the Lacks family did not receive money from her cells, but that there was no consent gained in the first place. Like the author mentions, back then there would have been no way for the Lacks family to gain from the cells monetarily, and now it is much too late. I was shocked to find that even today patients do not have rights to their tissues and the money that can be gained from science using them. It is because of these issues that I find this book to be more interesting in the ethical discussions it raises. What do doctors have to tell you and when? If all of us had the rights to every single one of our cells how would that change the face of science? It feels like people might try to exploit that right just the way doctor's exploited Henrietta. I appreciated this book because of the difficult issues it raises and its refusal to give easy answers.

Now for some bad news. Even though I thought the story was important I thought that the author may have been able to tell it better at certain points. The beginning half of the book was really engaging for me, however it seemed as though the author found it difficult to weave in the stories of Deborah into that previous narrative. This was the author's first book and it I feel that was very apparent; which is to say that is seemed a bit unorganized at times. But, all in all I found it enjoyable and much better than the first two books we had chosen for this club. I am looking forward to the next one!

Henrietta Lacks

As you can see by the speed in which I read this book, I loved it! I was sucked in right away with Henrietta's horrifying cancer ordeal. I was stunned to read how she suffered and was treated with such a lack of humanity. But I was glad that her suffering was not for naught; her life goes on through her cells. I was appalled by the fact that her family never received any monetary compensation while others became rich. I do not believe for one second that the original doctors that took her cells did not profit in some way. I feel that in some way the author of the book will profit in a big way, while the Lack's family will once again be left with very little. I know that this author set up an education fund and will put "some" proceeds from the sale of the book into the fund. this, however, is not enough. I'm going to try to track down that fund and donate myself. I encourage all of you to do the same. I feel compelled to not let Henrietta down but to let her family know that there are people out there that care and will try to help the family. the family that lost their mother. I'm not trying to over idealize Henrietta but she had a hard life and died a hard death. her children suffered, especially little Elsie, left alone in that frightening institution. it's a disgrace. being black in the jim crow south allowed this story to unfold the way that it did, and I for one, want to do something about it to pay restitution to the Lack's family.