The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks by Rebecca Skloot
The book tells the story of Henrietta Lacks, a poor African American tobacco farmer whose cells, taken without her knowledge in 1951, became one of the most important tools in medicine, vital for developing the polio vaccine, cloning, gene mapping, and more. Henrietta's cells have been bought and sold by the billions, yet she remains virtually unknown, and her family can't afford health insurance. The book explores the collision between ethics, race, and medicine; of scientific discovery and faith healing; and of a daughter consumed with questions about the mother she never knew.
The 1524th greatest book of all time
- Published
- 2010
- Nationality
- American
- Type
- Nonfiction
- Pages
- 300-400
- Words
- 128,000
- Original Language
- English
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This book is on the following lists:
- 63rd on The 100 best books of the 21st century (The Guardian)
- 69th on The Greatest Books of All Time (Reader's Digest)
- 1279th on Our Users' Favorite Books of All Time (The Greatest Books Users)
- 100 Books to Read in a Lifetime (Amazon.com (USA))
- 100 All-Time Greatest Popular Science Books (Open Education Database)
- Boston Public Library: Top Fiction and Non-Fiction Books of the 2010s (Boston Public Library)
- 48 Good Books (University of Buffalo)
- 100 Best Books of the Decade so Far (2010-2015) (Oyster Books)