Inside the O'Briens

A Novel

De: Lisa Genova

Narrado por: Skipp Sudduth

Duración: 11 h y 13 m

Resumen del Editor

From award-winning, New York Times best-selling author Lisa Genova comes a powerful new novel that does for Huntington's disease what her debut Still Alice did for Alzheimer's.

Joe O'Brien is a 44-year-old Boston police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, a proud father of four children in their 20s, and a respected, seasoned law enforcement officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to aging and the cumulative physical and psychological 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 it is genetic. Each of Joe's four children has a 50 percent chance of inheriting their father's disease, and a simple blood test can reveal their genetic fate. While watching their potential futures in their father's escalating symptoms, the children struggle with the questions this test imposes on their young adult lives, including his youngest, 21-year-old Katie. Does she want to know? What if she's gene positive? Can she live with the constant anxiety of not knowing?

As Joe's symptoms worsen, and he's eventually stripped of his badge and more, he struggles to maintain his identity and sense of purpose. How can he find hope in a situation that feels hopeless? How can he find courage without any armor or weapons? What else might he be able to pass down to his children other than a fatal disease? Where is the honor in living and dying with Huntington's?

©2015 Lisa Genova (P)2015 Simon & Schuster

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Skipp Sudduth's performance of Genova's exploration of Huntington's disease makes the science of this inherited, incurable, degenerative nerve disease very personal.... Sudduth's no-nonsense delivery and unemotional handling of this highly emotional subject are exactly right.... Clear-eyed and heartrending, this is top-notch listening." ( AudioFile)

Learned A Lot

Even though it can be sad it was uplifting and informative
I absolutely recommend it

Educational and entertaining

The characters are all fully developed and interesting. They're people I can relate to. Many points in the story that brought tears and many that made me laugh out loud.
Highly recommended.

pretty good overall...but

The indecision of one character was maddening, and I didn't agree with the ethical decisions by some of the characters.
Overall, it was engaging, though, just a few hiccups through the indecision phase. The ending wasn't awesome (or at least according to me, some might like it, apparently the author did).

Great but then left questioning

I enjoyed this book and completely gave you a better at clinical understanding of Huntington's disease but I do not like how the author ended the book and anticipation for what's next I don't know if Katie has it or if she didn't I would like to know more

Lisa Genova heartbreaker

Every book she writes educates you, but it also makes you more human when confronted with or by anyone who is going through this. However, since this one covers multiple generations, it was a real tearjerker for me.

Great Story, Terrible Language

I have read all of Lisa Genova's books and have loved every one of them. This is the first book I have read by this author that has had such offensive language. I understand that the family in the story is a working class family facing a terrible prognosis, but I just don't believe that most people use four letter words to talk to members of their family. I would have enjoyed the story more if the language had been toned down.

WOW!

Heartbreaking, enlightening, rewarding. This book will inspire, pull at your heartstrings and make you want to hug your family and thank God for His blessings. I found myself laughing through my tears. Great narration.

good read

loved the story. but was disappointed with the very last point without the reveal of Katie.

Plot problems, but kept my attention.

I liked the story but felt like there was so much more to tell. It felt unfinished. There were also some elements that felt unrealistic and poorly developed. The relationship between Katie and Felix felt rushed and contrived. The length of time Joe continued to work with the symptoms that were being experienced at home also seemed too extreme to be believable. But, the story kept my attention.

Remarkable work

Would you consider the audio edition of Inside the O'Briens to be better than the print version?

I didn't read the print, but enjoyed the story as narrated greatly

What did you like best about this story?

It brought the family to life.

What does Skipp Sudduth bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

It felt as if he was the character.

If you could take any character from Inside the O'Briens out to dinner, who would it be and why?

I would prefer to have a family dinner with them all.