Next GVSU community reading title selected

ALLENDALE, Mich. — "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," by Rebecca Skloot, has been selected as the Grand Valley State University Community Reading Project title for the academic year 2010-11.

The book tells the story of Henrietta Lacks, who is known to scientists as HeLa. She was a poor Southern tobacco farmer who worked the same land as her slave ancestors, yet her cells — taken without her knowledge — became one of the most important tools in medicine. Lacks' cells grow well in culture and are still alive today, though she has been dead for more than 60 years. HeLa cells were vital for developing the polio vaccine and have helped uncover secrets of cancer, viruses, and the effects of the atom bomb. The cells helped lead to important advances like in vitro fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping; and have been bought and sold by the billions. Yet Lacks herself remains virtually unknown, buried in an unmarked grave.

Skloot chronicles the story of Lacks and her family — who did not learn about the research on her cells until more than 20 years after her death, when scientists investigating HeLa began using her husband and children in research without informed consent. And though the cells had launched a multimillion-dollar industry that sells human biological materials, her family never saw any of the profits. Through the story of the Lacks family, Skloot examines the dark history of experimentation on African Americans, the birth of bioethics, and the legal battles over whether we control the stuff we are made of.

Skloot will give a lecture at Grand Valley about the book on March 30, 2011.

Skloot is a science writer whose work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine; O, the Oprah Magazine; Discover; Columbia Journalism Review; and many other publications. She specializes in narrative science writing and has explored a wide range of topics, including goldfish surgery, tissue ownership rights, race and medicine, food politics, and the perils of packs of wild dogs in Manhattan. She is also a contributing editor at Popular Science magazine, and has worked as a correspondent for NPR’s RadioLab and PBS’s Nova ScienceNOW. "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," her debut book, took more than a decade to research and write, and instantly became a New York Times best-seller.

Skloot has a bachelor’s degree in biological sciences and a master’s of fine arts degree in creative nonfiction. She currently teaches writing workshops and gives talks on subjects ranging from bioethics to book proposals at conferences and universities nationwide. She lives in Memphis and visits New York City often.

The Community Reading Project is sponsored by the Brooks College of Interdisciplinary Studies, University Libraries and University Bookstore. Susan Mendoza, director of Integrative Learning, said the CRP committee selected "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks," because of the questions it raises about ethics, race, and morality.

Book distribution on Grand Valley’s campuses will begin in November. There are desk copies available for faculty; contact Mendoza at [email protected].