The Class of 2015 will receive its first reading assignment from Northwestern over the summer: Rebecca Skloot’s The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks was selected for the 2011-2012 One Book One Northwestern initiative.
The book traces the life of Henrietta Lacks and her “immortal” human cells, which were the first to be grown in a laboratory in the 1950s. After succumbing to cancer in the “colored” ward of a Baltimore hospital, the 31-year-old mother’s cells provided experimental gold for the scientific community that brought about monumental advances in medicine including the polio vaccine and chemotherapy. Skloot’s account sheds light on how the discovery affected Lacks’ family and the questionable ethics it entailed.
Linda Hicke, associate vice president for research and faculty director of the One Book program, described the book as raising important issues in medical ethics and the process of scientific discovery.
“The book puts into human and policy context implications of this revolution in cell biology,” she said.
Skloot’s widely acclaimed book will be One Book’s subject for the faculty- and student-run programming on campus beginning next fall to provide a single focus for campus-wide discussion across disciplines.
“The information in this book is very accessible to the whole Northwestern community,” project coordinator Nancy Cunniff said. “From historical and scientific points of view it’s very engaging, but the human story at the heart of it will draw people in.”
One Book One Northwestern was created by the Office of the President. Next year’s events will be coordinated by the Office for Research, the Department for African-American Studies and NU Ventures in Biology Education, a new program for incoming freshman biology majors.
Complimentary copies of the book will be sent to incoming freshmen and transfer students in July. Current students and faculty are strongly encouraged to pick up a copy as well.