Still Alice by Lisa Genova // Forgot to Post lol

Still Alice is not the first book I read of Lisa Genova. I recognised the author when I opened the Goodreads to add the book.

I have read the Left Neglected too from Lisa Genova.

Funny story, I remember thinking that Left Neglected means the protagonist has been left neglected emotionally… and when I read the book it was about the diseases where the one half of the body is paralysed.

Despite being tragic, the story ends on a happy note. This is not the case with the Still Alice.

Lisa Genova’s female protagonists are high-achievers. May be she see herself inside them. But whatever the case, in both the books, females are working hard and too busy when the calamity strikes.

A diseased. The smart female gets it, and then the entire family get in together. Learning the value of love and family.

Good formula for the book and it works excellently due to the subject matter. But the picture Genova creates is descriptive. Every character revolves around the female yet achieve a certain contrast. In few words, we get their motivations, arc and the footprints.

And while writing this review, I remember that I have not published anything for a long time. But I am in middle of changing the job and it was hectic. It is the first weekend so I am writing this.

I have read more books in between, but not writing their reviews. I am also reading HP Lovecraft this year and trying to avoid American writers.

Next week is International Book Fair and I am going to go there so subscribe to my Youtube channel. I will post a video there. Now back to review.

Story of Still Alice

As I mentioned, it is not about story. There is a girl working hard. Phd professor, researcher and top of her career and line.

But gradually lost it all when Alzheimer shows up. The story is about person coming to terms with their illness, and how their family help the person manage it.

Still Alice is sad story, but with very optimistic ending. It gives me an insight into the mind of such people. I mean. For a time, the person knows so much. But then they forget everything. Is it the same person?

Still Alice Book Quotes Lisa Genova

 

Still Alice Book Quotes Lisa Genova

 

Still Alice Book Quotes Lisa Genova

Looking for Alice

Weird but when reading the book, a question came up again and again. It is from the John Green book Paper Towns. Two quotes basically.

  • What a treacherous thing it is to believe that a person is more than a person.
  • The town was paper, but the memories were not.

Alice lost her memories. Is she still Alice?

If the memories makes a person, then the person is changed?

The similar thing is explored in the Klara and The Sun. The robot is very true to what a human could be. But humans have something that these AI can never have. That is the little memories and feelings.

But if the human does not have those, is it mean the person is not that person anymore.

A person is sum of his overall experience, interactions, learning, feelings, and thing he knows. People he knows and connection he made. A man living in a jungle all alone, whom no one knows, and who knows no one — is he exist?

Is the impact of the existence a criteria of existence? Or you can exist even if your existence is not proven?

Alice exist, but she is an empty shell. But then, everyone knows her.

But what if other people also forget her. As is the case with the many homeless people suffering from the same diseases. People forget where they live and get lost all the time. And no one knows them, and they know no one. They live on the road for some time, on the gratitude of passers by. Winter-summer does not exist. And sometime, God is angry and the car kills the person, giving a middle finger to the entire human world, that if the existence is made through connection, then the nature will claim its due.

A person found dead in their apartment all alone. It took neighbours 5 days to learn the person’s death. No one knows him. He knows no one. From where he come, from where he goes.

So does Alice exist.

Is it Still Alice?

The title is the question itself. The book explore the question, and end up giving the most generic answer possible.

Family. Family is what make your existence existence. At core, its the connection. If someone knows you, if someone know you exist, only then you exist.

But I guess Lisa Genova could have explored more. However the book is all about the disease, but the philosophical concept could have been touched.

I can discuss this, but it is out of scope of this review.

Learning about Disease

I learned a lot about Alzheimer from the book. How it affect the families, and it runs in the family.

Guess most of it is correct because the writer is known neurologist. So if your family member is suffering, this could be a good book.

Summary
Still Alice

Still Alice by Lisa Genova is a story of accepting the Alzheimer and living with it. It also explores what makes a person person.

Author: Lisa Genova

Editor's Rating:
3

Faizan Fahim

Hello, welcome to this blog. Just writing reviews of the book I like. Also, favorite quotes, poetry, memes, sometimes other topics too, but always related to literature. So join me on Twitter to talk to me.

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