Inside the O'Briens by Lisa Genova

"The future, good or bad, is a fantasy. There is only this moment, right now."

—Inside the O'Briens by Lisa Genova

Title: Inside the O'Briens

Author: Lisa Genova

Page Count: 335 (Paperback)

Synopsis:

Joe O'Brien is a Boston cop whose stamina and methodical mind have seen him through decades policing the city streets. When he starts making uncharacteristic errors, he attributes them to stress until, finally, he agrees to see a doctor and is handed a terrifying diagnosis: Huntington's disease.

Not only is Joe's life changing beyond recognition, but each of his four grown children has a fifty-fifty chance of inheriting the disease. Observing her potential future play out in his escalating symptoms, his yoga teacher daughter Katie wrestles with how to make the most of the here and now, and connect with her dad who is, inside, always an O'Brien.

Thoughts:

I read the last two sentences from page 1 and I’m already questioning my decision of picking up the book. *laughs* Oh no, this would break me, I told myself. But hey, it’s my first book after I said I’ll give myself a chance again. It felt so good to pick up a book from my bought-but-might-never-read pile, actually finish it AND in only five (5) days instead of a month! I’m even more ecstatic I’m sitting here writing my thoughts on top of that. 

I got my copy from this year’s Big Bad Wolf Books. I grabbed it because I read two (2) other books by Lisa Genova—Still Alice and Left Neglected—before and I loooove Still Alice. I’m sure I liked Left Neglected too but I don’t remember much about it. I guess I have to re-read them?*shrugs* I’m still kicking myself for putting her other novel, Love Anthony, down because it wasn’t there anymore when I came back for it later. *cries*

Although I definitely prefer Still Alice, Inside the O’Briens is still a good read. As with her other works, Genova walks us through the lives of those affected by the illness/disease; the patient, the family, the friends. She introduces you to their reality and increases your awareness on the illness/disease particular in each book. For Inside the O’Briens, it is Huntington’s disease (HD). Frankly, before this book, I never heard of HD so it is a very educational read for me. I learned new words and terms relating to HD (aside from being a neuroscientist herself, Genova talked to field professionals to provide for an accurate and credible view of HD) and also Yoga poses. Genova actually enrolled herself in a Yoga Studio while writing this book and talked to people who contributed so much to the novel (people who are experiencing HD, their families, policemen and even baseball fans). I believe it is equally meaningful to read the acknowledgments and discussions to appreciate the efforts that make up the books we read. Which reminds me: you can make a donation to Huntington's research (and/or Alzheimer's and ALS research) in Lisa Genova's website under Readers In Action here.

There are a lot of lines that I think were nicely written. I laughed at Joe’s humour about Rosie’s cooking, the figurines that are displayed around their house, and even his simple description of a day’s weather. There was also the irony of how people react when they see a police officer versus other jobs and I thought: That’s true. We should be grateful to these officers more, people! *coughs* the good ones *coughs* And then there are those lines that just demand you to feel and I can’t help but read them twice (or more) over. Something that feels short for me, though, is the O’Brien Family has four (4) children but their lives and characters weren’t fully expounded. Since it was focused on Joe and Katie’s viewpoint, we didn't get to know more about the other members of the family. I think it’s important to also give the readers a view of the children’s minds for us to connect with them and the story more. Besides, Katie's viewpoint sometimes annoys and tires me. *peace* I find her indecisive rattles repetitive so Joe's narration was a breather and I liked it more.

Inside the O'Briens is the kind of book which you already know what’s coming and yet you dread them and desperately hope alongside the characters. Although I think some people might get bored because of the predictability and that’s understandable. The book got me teary-eyed but it is also full of positive things and hope at the same time—which is just.so.nice. *sheds tears* It gives you a warm feeling.

Warning about the F-word: there are a lot in this book. Personally, I’m okay with it. I read a lot of novels containing this kind of language and a lot of ‘em are worse than this. Usually the author includes these to capture or portray their characters more without needless long explanation on their personalities and backgrounds. However, I still like to put this out there because not everyone is comfortable with foul languages and also books are available to younger audience, too!  I like that Rosie tries to scold them every time, though.

Overall, I like it and I'm glad I read this book. But if you are new to Lisa Genova's novels, I would recommend Still Alice more. 

SPOILER ALERT! Only click if you have finished the book!

That.Ending.Thooooooo! Ugh~!!! It's so ironic how Katie is internally debating the entire time whether or not she wants to know if she has HD and when she finally decided she does...Boom! THAT'S IT! End of the book! Where's the result? OMG!~ I!Deserve!To!Know! *cries* And I understand not knowing about JJ's son because that's too far out in the future...but Patrick! Does he already have it? Is that why he was acting the way he was? Or he doesn't and we are only as paranoid as they were? We will never know, folks.