“Reality depends on perspective, on what is paid attention to.”
43rd – Inside the O’Briens by Lisa Genova
Rating: 
(Good read, definitely)
What is it about: Joe O’Brien is a forty-four-year-old police officer from the Irish Catholic neighborhood of Charlestown, Massachusetts. A devoted husband, proud father of four children in their twenties, and respected officer, Joe begins experiencing bouts of disorganized thinking, uncharacteristic temper outbursts, and strange, involuntary movements. He initially attributes these episodes to the 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. 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 her potential future in her father’s escalating symptoms, twenty-one-year-old daughter Katie struggles with the questions this test imposes on her young adult life. 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, Joe struggles to maintain hope and a sense of purpose, while Katie and her siblings must find the courage to either live a life “at risk” or learn their fate.
What I Love: How the story unfolds.
The explanatory prelude.
The suspense.
The rawness of the characters and their individuality.
The lovely picture of a family battling a hard disease with strength, love and hope.
What I Don’t Love Much: None. 4 stars rating is because I love Lisa Genova’s Love Anthony and Still Alice more. 🙂
Wise Words: “Once you can imagine these things, you can’t unimagine them.”
“Every breath is a risk. Love is why we breathe.” –Katie
—
A Reading Writer 
Sounds like a good read.
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Nice!
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thank you, love! 😀
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Wow this sounds like a tear jerker. Huntington disease is one of a bad way to go
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yes! indeed!!!
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😊
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Ooh.. wanna read this too!
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yaaaaay! 😀 😀 😀
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Oh my goodness, I think this is my fave so far–sounds gut-wrenchingly human, and rich.
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awwww. yes sister. this is an epic read! ❤
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It does sound like it!!
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yes sister 😀 😀 😀
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Nice review Rosema. The police element interests me especially the struggle to cope with losing his badge as well as the disease. I will definitely put this on the reading list.
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yes. you got that right. the reality that he is a policeman, and he had that disease makes this book extra interesting. 🙂
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Sister, you share and review an important story about the kind of disease that keeps changing everything all the time. I can only imagine the courage it takes to endure all the physical hardship and the heartache. I appreciate there being such a realistic account of what a family goes through.
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Yes, brother. It was a tough read. But an inspiring one too. The author is one skilled storyteller. 🙂
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