Social Work Book Club

I am pleased to announce that THE NEW SOCIAL WORKER Book Club´s second book selection is the novel STILL ALICE, by Lisa Genova. I started reading this book a few weeks ago and had a hard time putting it down.

In this novel, the brilliant Harvard psychology and linguistics professor Dr. Alice Howland, just before her 50th birthday, notices small lapses in her memory. She writes it off as menopausal symptoms at first, but she soon realizes that there may be more to it than that. As she is walking in a familiar area of Cambridge, she suddenly forgets how to get home.

Alice is eventually diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer´s Disease. The story is told from her point of view and illustrates the many issues that early-onset Alzheimer´s patients and their families face. Neuroscientist and first-time novelist Lisa Genova tells the story with great care and detail.

The book has taken the literary world by storm. After her manuscript was ignored by more than 100 literary agents, Lisa Genova published Still Alice herself, later gaining attention and being picked up by an imprint of Simon and Schuster called Pocket Books. The Pocket Books edition of Still Alice debuted in January 2009 at number 5 on the New York Times trade paperback fiction bestseller list.

Please read this book with me! You can order STILL ALICE from Amazon.com for $10.20 (or less from some third-party sellers on Amazon) plus shipping.

Here is a link to http://tinyurl.com/nuvsbc

We will discuss this book in an online chat on Tuesday, November 17, 9 p.m. ET, at http://www.socialworkchat.org

Also, we are having a special LIVE FACE-TO-FACE event in conjunction with this book club selection. On November 17, the night of the live chat, Temple University Harrisburg (PA) will host a get-together at its
location in Strawberry Square at the corner of 4th and Walnut Streets in Harrisburg, PA. We will meet at 8 p.m. for refreshments and a presentation by Linda Grobman (me!), publisher/editor of The New Social Worker. Then at 9 p.m., we will join the online chat. At 8:00, the best parking is on the streets. The meters are free after 5 p.m. Also the State parking spaces by the Forum and Commonwealth Ave. are available after 5PM.

The Temple University event is open to all social workers and students. You will need to get a visitor´s badge and sign-in with security if not affiliated with Temple.

Also, if you are participating in the online chat, be sure to register at http://www.socialworkchat.org ahead of the November 17 chat date.

Look forward to reading and chatting with you!