'Inside the O'Briens' by Lisa Genova is a heart-wrenching story that delves into the lives of the O'Brien family as they navigate the challenges of Huntington's Disease. Joe O'Brien, a Boston cop and father of four, is diagnosed with Huntington's Disease, a hereditary condition that will impact not only his life but also the future of his children. The book follows the family's journey as they come to terms with the diagnosis, make difficult decisions, and support each other through the struggles that come with the disease. Genova's writing style beautifully captures the emotional turmoil and complexities of living with a genetic neurodegenerative disease.
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Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings
Content warnings include themes of terminal illness, familial grief, mental health struggles, discussions of suicide, and genetic testing.
Has Romance?
There is a medium level of romance present in the novel, especially through Katie's relationships, which intersect with the family's struggles.
From The Publisher:
A New York Times bestseller ▪ A Library Journal Best Books of 2015 Pick ▪ A St. Louis Post-Dispatch Best Books of 2015 Pick ▪A GoodReads Top Ten Fiction Book of 2015 ▪ A People Magazine Great Read
From New York Times bestselling author and neuroscientist Lisa Genova comes a "heartbreaking…very human novel" (Matthew Thomas, author of We Are Not Ourselves) that does for Huntington's disease what her debut novel Still Alice did for Alzheimer's.
Joe O'Brien is a forty-three-year-old police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, proud father of four children in their twenties, and respected officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to the stress of his job, but as these symptoms worsen, he agrees to see a neurologist and is handed a diagnosis that will change his and his family's lives forever: Huntington's disease.
Huntington's is a lethal neurodegenerative disease with no treatment and no cure, and each of Joe's four children has a 50 percent chance of inheriting their father's disease. While watching her potential future in her father's escalating symptoms, twenty-one-year-old daughter Katie struggles with the questions this test imposes on her young adult life. As Joe's symptoms worsen and he's eventually stripped of his badge and more, Joe struggles to maintain hope and a sense of purpose, while Katie and her siblings must find the courage to either live a life "at risk" or learn their fate.
Praised for writing that "explores the resilience of the human spirit" (San Francisco Chronicle), Lisa Genova has once again delivered a novel as powerful and unforgettable as the human insights at its core.
Ratings (5)
Incredible (2) | |
Loved It (1) | |
It Was OK (2) |
Reader Stats (14):
Read It (5) | |
Want To Read (6) | |
Not Interested (3) |
2 comment(s)
In one hand this is a very sad story about a family that have to deal with Huntington's disease after the father becomes sick with it, will his children have the same? But yet it's a beautiful story about a family's strength and love that grows stronger day by day and it's a hopeful story as well.
Huntington's disease is hit to a Irish Catholic Family. When Joe O'Brien and his wife Rosie finds out that Joe, a Boston cop, has Huntington's disease, they are heartbroken. But the truth that there is a 50-50 chance of their kids inheriting this disease leaves them devastated.
Joe's kids, well grown up and adults have a choice to known whether they will have this dreadful disease by some tests. Its up to them to live with the mystery of not knowing or dread of HD by knowing.
The family suffers due to HD. Relationships wither and strengthen as this journey with HD progresses. Genova splendidly lays out the truth of HD through O'briens.
I hated this book when it ended without telling me about Katie's test result :@
What can you read after
Inside the O'Briens?
About the Author:
Acclaimed as the Oliver Sacks of fiction and the Michael Crichton of brain science, Lisa Genova is the New York Times bestselling author of Still Alice, Left Neglected, Love Anthony, Inside the O'Briens, and Remember. Still Alice was adapted into an Oscar-winning film starring Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin, and Kristen Stewart. Lisa graduated valedictorian from Bates College with a degree in biopsychology and holds a PhD in neuroscience from Harvard University. She travels worldwide speaking about the neurological diseases she writes about and has appeared on The Dr. Oz Show, Today, PBS NewsHour, CNN, and NPR. Her TED talk, What You Can Do To Prevent Alzheimer's, has been viewed over 2 million times.
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