Another excellent book by Lisa Genova, this one a non-fiction. If you've read her novel Still Alice, you know that the author writes from a wealth of expertise in neuroscience. Having studied memory & cognition in grad school, I found this book very interesting- a clearly written compendium of the basic tenets of memory, its strengths and its failings. I enjoyed the way she writes in a down to earth manner and uses personal examples to illustrate her points. Great reading list provided at the end as well.

This book was like a 3.5 for me but I think Lisa Genova did an excellent job making this book approachable from all audiences. Could be very helpful for people suffering from memory anxiety that want a perspective grounded in neuroscience and humanism. I also left this read with some meaningful points for consideration despite being firmly outside of the expected audience, which was nice surprise.

I never thought I’d read a book about memory retention and Alzheimer’s prevention. Genova’s writing pulled me in to each page. Highly recommend if you’re interested in learning more about how the brain works.

“You don’t need memory to love and feel loved.”
“Take it seriously. Hold it lightly. Memory isn’t everything.”

This book definitely hit home for me. It was written in such a way that made it interesting and easy to understand.