Fireside Readers Book Discussion Group
On November 1st, the group will meet to discuss the book The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot. The book details the true story of how a single, abbreviated life grew a seemingly immortal line of cells that made some of the most crucial innovations in modern science possible. Skloot has fashioned in The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks a fascinating and moving story of medicine and family, and the intriguing details of how life is sustained in laboratories and in memory. Henrietta Lacks was a mother of five in Baltimore, a poor African American migrant from the tobacco farms of Virginia, who died from a cruelly aggressive cancer at the age of 30 in 1951. A sample of her cancerous tissue, taken without her knowledge or consent, as was the custom then, turned out to provide one of the holy grails of mid-century biology: human cells that could survive--even thrive--in the lab. Known as HeLa cells, their stunning potency gave scientists a building block for countless breakthroughs, beginning with the cure for polio.
Skloot tells the story of Henrietta Lacks, her family, and their fight to uncover the truth and the deception behind the use of Henrietta’s cells.
The group meets on the first Monday of the month at 7 p.m. in the Community room. As always, new members and guests are always welcome. Join us, even if you haven’t finished the book! Light refreshments will be served. Stay up to date with the Fireside Readers by visiting our web page. http://www.wayne.uakron.edu/library/fi reside.php
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