The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks

By: Rebecca Skloot

Narrated by: Cassandra Campbell, Bahni Turpin

Length: 12 hrs and 30 mins

Publisher's summary

Number one New York Times best seller.

Now a major motion picture from HBO® starring Oprah Winfrey and Rose Byrne.

One of the “most influential” (CNN), “defining” (Lit Hub), and “best” (The Philadelphia Inquirer) books of the decade.

One of essence’s 50 most impactful Black books of the past 50 years.

Named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times Book Review, Entertainment Weekly, O: The Oprah Magazine, NPR, Financial Times, New York, Independent (UK), Times (UK), Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, Kirkus Reviews, Booklist, Globe, and Mail.

Her name was Henrietta Lacks, but scientists know her as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells - taken without her knowledge - became one of the most important tools in medicine: The first “immortal” human cells grown in culture, which are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than 60 years. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine; uncovered secrets of cancer, viruses, and the atom bomb’s effects; helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. Yet Henrietta Lacks remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.

Henrietta’s family did not learn of her “immortality” until more than 20 years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials, her family never saw any of the profits. As Rebecca Skloot so brilliantly shows, the story of the Lacks family - past and present - is inextricably connected to the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of.

Over the decade it took to uncover this story, Rebecca became enmeshed in the lives of the Lacks family - especially Henrietta’s daughter Deborah. Deborah was consumed with questions: Had scientists cloned her mother? Had they killed her to harvest her cells? And if her mother was so important to medicine, why couldn’t her children afford health insurance? Intimate in feeling, astonishing in scope, and impossible to put down, The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks captures the beauty and drama of scientific discovery, as well as its human consequences.

©2010 Rebecca Skloot (P)2010 Random House

Critic reviews

Winner of The Chicago Tribune Heartland Prize for nonfiction

"The story of modern medicine and bioethics - and, indeed, race relations - is refracted beautifully, and movingly.” (Entertainment Weekly)

"Writing with a novelist's artistry, a biologist's expertise, and the zeal of an investigative reporter, Skloot tells a truly astonishing story of racism and poverty, science and conscience, spirituality and family driven by a galvanizing inquiry into the sanctity of the body and the very nature of the life force." (

Booklist)

Everyone should read/ listen to this

A very important work on so many crucial issues of humanity and science. A brilliant listening experience. I hadn't expected this book to enthrall me as it did
Congratulations and thanks to Rebecca Skloot

Illuminating and wrenching

An important book that explores medical ethics, scientific hubris, poverty, racism, and fundamental questions about an individual's rights and ownership of his or her own body.

The book was SO much better than the film.

I watched the film on HBO and realized that there was only 20 minutes left and that there was NO way they could finish it and answer all of the questions I still had.

Beyond the Lacks family, and a few of the researchers, the character development of many of the people involved was just nonexistent. It almost made the film seem like it was fictional, as opposed to something that really happened.

After reading just the first few chapters, I can remember thinking to myself, "Now this is more along the lines of what I wanted to know about."

The film could have (and in my opinion, should have) been a multiple episode mini-series, as opposed to the 100 minute feature film that it was.

All of that aside, I loved the book. I'd never heard of Henrietta Lacks before and I'm glad the author worked so hard to share her story.

Incredible True Story Eveyone Should Know

Henrietta Lacks should be a household name given all her cells have provided to medical research. Absolutely unbelievable that this story isn't told in every biology classroom. Thank you Rebecca Skloot for telling this powerful story and breathing HUMAN life into HeLa.

Mind Blown

This book has everything i love. A complex and interning story that is well written and weaves in the present day and history that i have never heard before. The author also touches on important social justice issues involving race, education, income inequality, informed consent, and medical research. This book informs and challenges on multiple levels. It should be taught in ever college introduction class.

One of the best books I've read

The book is so well structured and tells the story in a way that leaves nothing ambiguous

very good book

I enjoyes this book. The facts that were shared were scary and enlightening all tpgether. I appreciate the effert the author put into gathering tge truth. Thank you for aharing this info for all to read.

Knowing history to change the future

Excellent way to give historical context to a present concern. Great way to bing science, life experiences, and the ethical dilemmas together

Great performance and story.

Just great. It does get slow in the middle. I took a break when listening. But this book gives a great insight on how Henrietta's cells have impacted science and her family.

Couldn't turn it off

I love the story, very entertaining, well performed. I highly recommend to anyone with an interest and biology nursing science medicine or history