• Still Alice

  • By: Lisa Genova
  • Narrated by: Lisa Genova
  • Length: 7 hrs and 46 mins
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars (7,056 ratings)

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Still Alice  By  cover art

Still Alice

By: Lisa Genova
Narrated by: Lisa Genova
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Editorial reviews

The heart-wrenching tale of 50-year-old Alice Howland and her early onset Alzheimer's diagnosis is narrated eloquently by author Lisa Genova. Alice, a successful linguistics professor at Harvard, is married to John, an equally esteemed Harvard professor, and together they have three grown children. Her biggest worry in life is her youngest daughter's move to L.A. to pursue acting until Alice starts forgetting things. It begins innocuously enough: misplacing her BlackBerry, missing unimportant appointments on her to-do list, searching her mind for tip-of-the-tongue phrases. But when she goes on her familiar daily run through Cambridge, and becomes disoriented just one mile from home, Alice knows something is terribly wrong.

A battery of tests and multiple doctor visits later, her worst nightmare is confirmed she is in the first stages of early onset Alzheimer's disease. Told from Alice's perspective, it's a frighteningly keen insight to the slow deterioration of a debilitating disease. Every nuance of pain, frustration, fear, and sorrow is captured in Genova's voice and she expertly utilizes the pregnant pause, and short, choppy sentences to convey the confusion and pain of Howland's thoughts during testing and diagnosis.

Genova's slight Boston accent lends authenticity to the story, and she doesn't oversell the emotion behind the words. Her transitions between character dialogue are smooth and subtle, but she so embodies the main character Alice, it's hard to remember that it is Genova, and not Howland herself, telling her story. Knowing its being read exactly as it was intended by the author creates an even stronger connection to the work. Equally present is the devastating effect this illness has on Alice's husband, children, and coworkers. And while there's obviously no happy ending in sight, Genova still manages to paint a story of hope, reminding listeners that even in the midst of great loss and suffering, love remains. Colleen Oakley

Publisher's summary

What if every memory you've ever had will be erased from your mind, and you have no choice but to carry on...powerless to stop it?

Alice Howland is proud of the life she worked so hard to build. At 50 years old, she's a cognitive psychology professor at Harvard and a world-renowned expert in linguistics with a successful husband and three grown children. When she begins to grow disoriented and forgetful, a tragic diagnosis changes her life - and her relationship with her family and the world - forever.

At once beautiful and terrifying, this extraordinary debut novel by Lisa Genova is a moving and vivid depiction of life with early-onset Alzheimer's Disease that is as compelling as A Beautiful Mind and as unforgettable as Ordinary People.

©2009 Lisa Genova (P)2009 Simon & Schuster

Critic reviews

"After I read Still Alice, I wanted to stand up and tell a train full of strangers, 'You have to get this book.'" ( Boston Globe)
"With grace and compassion, Lisa Genova writes about the enormous white emptiness created by Alzheimer's." ( The Improper Bostonian)
"A masterpiece that will touch lives in ways none of us can even imagine." ( Alzheimer's Daily News)

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What listeners say about Still Alice

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    4,449
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Performance
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Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
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    4,220
  • 4 Stars
    1,341
  • 3 Stars
    307
  • 2 Stars
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  • 1 Stars
    27

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Sad and upsetting, but insightful

I liked the story and found the subject very alarming as I am turning 50 this year. On the whole it's a good book - well researched and good detail. I agree with other reviews that the author should not have narrated, made it very difficult to get past the voice to hear the story.

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5 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Still Alice--Great, but horrifying.

This was a great book to listen to. I will never forget it. We did it as a book club selection and was wonderful for discussion.

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3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great story about love of family and life

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

I would recommend this audiobook because it kept my attention all the way through.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Still Alice?

The end...read the story and find out for your self.

Which scene was your favorite?

I like the scene when Alice daughter came home to visit and mom did something with out asking her daughter's permission.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

Live your life with love as your guide no matter what the circumstances.

Any additional comments?

I loved the book...I cried, slow tears because the story was very moving and I know what it is like to watch someone with a terminal condition.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars

Should be read by everyone!

This is one of the few books I have listened to in a long time that I recommend to everyone. For those of us over 50 that wonder if dementia is in our future..for those under 50 that know of loved ones with dementia..it should be read by all! Lisa Genova did a great job in writing and in narrating this book. She brought reality to the disease and I kept forgetting that I was listening to fiction.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Touching story

Overall, the story was quite touching and a likely accurate portrait from Alice's point of view. The relationship between husband and wife felt a bit unexplored and left me feeling the husband was a bit of a villain. Outside the story, this book is a perfect example of why audible books should be read by actors. The author's voice was quite monotone and lacked the depth needed to execute dialogue between characters. She sounded as if she was reading, which really detracted from the emotion of the story. An unfortunate choice but overall still a good story.

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2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Touching and relevant

A truly heartbreaking story of how drastic events in real life can change the future for so many. The reading was sometimes monotonous but overall heartfelt.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Not what I expected.

We never know the problems or joys of other people's lives unless they share them with us. Even then we cannot grasp how it really feels. Wonderful story of life in Alice's shoes. I will read again and again.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Leave narration to the professionals

The story was well written. The author narrating the story was a bad choice. The whole story was read in a monotone voice. I felt like my second grade teacher was reading me a book. At times this big came very confusing as her voice, in certain dialogue scenes, became very hard to distinguish who was talking to who. I have listened to hundreds of audible books and a good narrator is important in the enjoyment of an audible book. Especially when many parts of the story was dialogue inside of Alice's head. But all in all a good story about the challenges that a family faces with this horrible disease.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Good story, awful narrator

I read all the reviews before starting this audiobook. And the reviewers weren't kidding about the poor narration. The author's voice was very flat with little emotion in very emotional parts. The story itself was really good and very sad. It's just sad to see relatively young people go through memory loss and dementia.

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1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Thought provoking & heart breaking

This book is a MUST for anyone dealing with a loved one who may have Alzheimer's disease.
It is written with love & caring.

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