ARE YOU LISTENING? INSIDE THE O'BRIENS: A REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

WELCOME TO BOOKIN' WITH BINGO'S" 
ARE YOU LISTENING? DAY"  
I AM EXCITED TO ANNOUNCE TODAY'S  
AUDIO BOOK CHOICE.....

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GIVEAWAY ENDED
INSIDE THE O'BRIENS
Read by Skipp Sudduth

BY LISA GENOVA
  

ABOUT THE AUDIO BOOK:
From award-winning, New York Times bestselling author and neuroscientist Lisa Genova comes a powerful new novel that does for Huntington’s Disease what her debut Still Alice did for Alzheimer’s.

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.

Praised for writing that “explores the resilience of the human spirit” (The San Francisco Chronicle), Lisa Genova has once again delivered a novel as powerful and unforgettable as the human insights at its core. 

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Lisa Genova is the New York Times bestselling author of Inside the O'Briens, Love Anthony, Left Neglected, and Still Alice. Her first novel, Still Alice, has been adapted into a film starring Julianne Moore, Alec Baldwin, and Kristen Stewart. Lisa graduated valedictorian from Bates College with a degree in biopsychology and holds a PhD in neuroscience from Harvard University. She travels worldwide speaking about Alzheimer’s disease, traumatic brain injury, and autism. She has appeared on Dr. Oz, The Diane Rehm Show, CNN, Chronicle, Fox News, and Canada AM and is featured in the Emmy Award–winning documentary film To Not Fade Away. She lives with her family in Massachusetts. 

SOME OTHER BOOKS BY LISA GENOVA:

                     

PRAISE FOR INSIDE THE O'BRIENS:
"This heartbreaking book tells the whole story of how a major illness affects a family. Genova’s gift is to show that things do work out, in a sense. Her very human novel teaches us to keep living, to lean on each other and be there to be leaned on."– Matthew Thomas, New York Times bestselling author of WE ARE NOT OURSELVES

"This novel of siblings rocked by their father's Huntington's disease is a total tearjerker, but ultimately it's a tribute to family love."– Glamour

"An intimate, heartbreaking look at life with Huntington's disease."– Marie Claire

"Genova...compassionately details how an illness--this time Huntington's disease--can destroy not only the afflicted, but those who love them as well."– People Magazine

"An unsparing, heart-piercing portrait…compelling."– The Washington Post

"A moving drama."– US Weekly
"
A gut-wrenching and memorable read."– Library Journal, Starred Review

"Compelling and masterful."– NYJOURNALOFBOOKS.com

"Inside the O'Briens is...about resilience and hope."– Bookreporter.com

"Genova’s book will move readers as well as demystify a condition sometimes called ‘the cruelest disease known to man.’"– Publishers Weekly

MY THOUGHTS/REVIEW:
Lisa Genova, author of STILL ALICE, has once again captured readers attention, especially mine, with her latest novel, INSIDE THE O'BRIENS. Just as STILL ALICE brought awareness to early onset Alzheimer's, INSIDE THE O'BRIENS deals with Huntington's, a neurological disease. But this isn't the story of a disease, but rather of a loving family and how they learn to handle and cope with what is happening. 

Joe O’Brien is a police officer in his mid-forties who lives in Charlestown, Massachusetts. This Irish Catholic community is where Joe and his wife, Rosie, have raised their family. J.J., their eldest, lives upstairs with his wife Colleen, and they have a baby on the way. Megan is a dedicated ballet dancer with the Boston Ballet and her sister Katie, the youngest O'Brien, is a yoga instructor who never quite feels like she can live up to her sister's status. Katie also is involved with a new love interest that she is not sure she can tell her parents about. Finally, is Patrick, unmarried, working in a local pub, and not looking to be tied down to anyone or anything.

As a dedicated officer, Joe loves his work, his family, and his life. However, when little annoyances start to be repeated, he begins to wonder what is going on. His temper gets the best of him, which is not like Joe, and then there are those strange uncontrolled movements. Joe first attributes it to stress because being a police officer is no easy job. However, when these things get worse and it begins to be noticed by others and play havoc at home, he agrees to see a doctor. Some think he is drinking or taking drugs which infuriates Joe. He is sure it has something to do with his knee from a fall. However, the doctor refers him to a neurologist and there Joe finds out he has an inherited neurodegenerative disease called Huntington's. 

This is more than a death sentence for Joe because it will change everything and everyone he cares about. With no cure for Huntington's, within the next 10 to 20 years, Joe will slowly lose his ability to do all normal things including moving, eating, and speaking. Because Huntington's is inherited, his children have a fifty per-cent chance of having the disease as well. A simple test for the gene can let the children know if they have Huntington's Disease. That is the easy part. Deciding whether they want to live their life knowing is quite another thing. Joe knows his children will need to make a decision on their own and it is enough to wonder if he can go on himself and have to witness this. When he is forced to stop being a police office, he wonders what more Huntington's can take from him. 

Lisa Genova has again written a gripping narrative that will grab you from the first page and not let you go. I have to say, especially in that the audio book is so excellently read by Skipp Sudduth, INSIDE THE O'BRIENS is a spellbinding story. Filled with fully fleshed out characters, readers will believe what is happening as each person makes very human, sensitive decisions. INSIDE THE O'BRIENS is moving and warm, painful and emotional, but not one you will want to put down or miss.

GIVEAWAY

 THANKS TO TO THE GOOD FOLKS AT

SIMON AND SCHUSTER AUDIO,
I HAVE ONE COPY OF THIS

WONDERFUL AUDIO BOOK TO 

GIVE AWAY TO ONE LUCKY WINNER!

  

--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES, PLEASE
--INCLUDE EMAIL ADDRESS IN COMMENT
--ALL ENTRIES/COMMENTS MUST
BE SEPARATE IN ORDER TO COUNT 
AS MORE THAN ONE ENTRY

HOW TO ENTER:

+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FOUND INTERESTING ABOUT INSIDE THE O'BRIENS THAT WOULD MAKE YOU WANT TO WIN THIS AUDIO BOOK

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND LEAVE A LINK I CAN FOLLOW IN THE ENTRY

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FIND INTERESTING ON LISA GENOVA'S WEBSITE BY GOING HERE

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON ONE OTHER CURRENT GIVEAWAY YOU HAVE ENTERED ON MY BLOG. IF YOU ENTERED MORE THAN ONE, YOU CAN COMMENT ON EACH ON SEPARATELY AND GAIN MORE ENTRIES THAT WAY

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON ONE WAY YOU FOLLOW MY BLOG. IF YOU FOLLOW MORE THAN ONE WAY, YOU CAN COMMENT SEPARATELY AND EACH WILL COUNT AS AN ENTRY

GIVEAWAY ENDS AT

 6 PM, EST, JUNE 20

GOOD LUCK!