Still Alice by debut American novelist Lisa Genova peers into the downward spiral of Alice, a Harvard psychology professor at the top of her profession, in the grip of early-onset Alzheimer’s. Few diseases frighten us more, for it has no cure and the inevitable creeping decline treats victim and loved ones with equal cruelty. Sticking to Alice’s perspective, the author begins with a telling example of forgetfulness and then artfully chronicles the slide and its impact on Alice’s boisterous, upper middle class family. Genova is particularly adept with the tricky parts at the end, by which time Alice recognizes no one. All the characters are alive on the page, so I was surprised by how little emotion the story aroused in me, yet I welcomed the eschewing of sentimentality.
For a story with a known dire end, the amazing aspect of Still Alice is that it never turns downbeat, never despairs. Alice’s spirit flails but remains strong, and this reader gained existential insight into one of the many paths towards our common end: death.
A skillful, compassionate novel. 3 stars.