About this item
Have you ever felt a crushing wave of panic when you can't for the life of you remember the name of that actor in the movie you saw last week, or you walk into a room only to forget why you went there in the first place? If you're over forty, you're probably not laughing. You might even be worried that these lapses in memory could be an early sign of Alzheimer's or dementia. In reality, for the vast majority of us, these examples of forgetting are completely normal. Why? Because while memory is amazing, it is far from perfect. Our brains aren't designed to remember every name we hear, plan we make, or day we experience. Just because your memory sometimes fails doesn't mean it's broken or succumbing to disease. Forgetting is actually part of being human.
About the Author
Lisa Genova graduated valedictorian, summa cum laude from Bates College with a degree in Biopsychology and has a Ph.D. in Neuroscience from Harvard University. Acclaimed as the Oliver Sacks of fiction and the Michael Crichton of brain science, she is the New York Times bestselling author of Still Alice, Left Neglected, Love Anthony, Inside the O'Briens and Every Note Played. Her first nonfiction book, REMEMBER: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting, was released March 23, 2021 and became an instant New York Times bestseller.Lisa's extensively researched fiction focuses on people living with neurological diseases and disorders, people who tend to be ignored, feared, or misunderstood, portrayed within a narrative that is accessible to the general public. Through fiction, she is dedicated to describing with passion and accuracy the journeys of those affected by brain diseases and conditions, thereby educating, demystifying, destigmatizing, and inspiring support for care and scientific research. She has written novels about Alzheimer's disease, traumatic brain injury, autism, Huntington's disease, and ALS.Still Alice (Alzheimer's) was adapted into a film starring Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin, Kristen Stewart, and Kate Bosworth. Julianne Moore won the Best Actress Oscar. Every Note Played (ALS) is in production and will star Christoph Waltz. The film adaptation for Inside the O'Briens (Huntington's) is in production.Speaking about brain health, memory, and the neurological diseases and disorders she writes about, Lisa has appeared on Today, the Dr. Oz Show, GPS with Fareed Zakaria, CNN, PBS NewsHour, and NPR and was featured in the Emmy award-winning documentary film To Not Fade Away and Have You Heard About Greg? She will be featured in an upcoming PBS Special about memory in June 2021.In 2015, Lisa was named one of the U.S. Top 50 Influencers in Aging by Next Avenue. She received The Pell Center Prize for Story in the Public Square, for "distinguished storytelling that has enriched the public dialogue," The Sargent and Eunice Shriver Profiles in Dignity Award, The Global Genes RARE Champions of Hope Award, and The American College of Neuropsychopharmacology Media Award for "informing the public about Treatment and ongoing research in medical illness." In 2016, she received an Honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Bates College, The Alzheimer's Association's Rita Hayworth Award, and The Huntington's Disease Society of America Community Awareness Award.Lisa's first TED talk, What You Can Do To Prevent Alzheimer's, has been viewed over 5 million times. Her latest TED talk, How Memory Works (and Why Forgetting Normal) , will be released April 21, 2021.
