You may know Lisa Genova from one of my favorite books, Still Alice. This year Lisa Genova takes a break from fiction to get into the science of memory and help to ease fears for those of us who tend to be forgetful.

When you reach a certain age, you can't help but be terrified about the lapses in memories that happen. Like forgetting where you parked your car or your spouse's birthday. In Remember, Lisa Genova reassures us that these examples are a perfectly normal part of aging. In fact, most of the things you don't remember are because you weren't paying attention, or it is so routine there was nothing memorable about it. It takes 30 seconds for something to store in your hippocampus. If you don't take that 30 seconds to look at the row number where you parked your car, you will never remember it.

As a neuroscientist, Lisa Genova uses some big words, but as a layperson, it is easy to follow along. She offers great, practical advice to help you with not only improving your memory but preventing Alzheimer's. For example, she is a proponent of using a to-do list. She equates it with wearing glasses. If you need help to see the print in a newspaper or reading a street sign, don't you get glasses? So why wouldn't you use a to-do list to help you remember to pick up the dry cleaning? I am a HUGE fan of to-do lists and would be a flaky employee and wife without them. Other tips include, pay attention, get enough sleep, get enough Vitamin D, and get enough exercise. It all seems simple, but it adds up.


Bottom Line - My husband and I took a road trip for the long Easter weekend and were hanging onto every word that Lisa Genova uttered in her audiobook. We would often pause the book to discuss points, talking about our own thoughts and fears. It made for a delightful reading experience and helped to ease our concerns about our own aging memories.

Details:
Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting by Lisa Genova
On Facebook
Pages: 272
Publisher: Harmony
Publication Date: 3/23/2021
Buy it Here!

When’s the last time you struggled to retrieve someone’s name in a conversation? You know it, but can't recall it...

If you experience this kind of thing from time to time, relax. The “tip of the tongue” experience is perfectly normal.

Whew!

Lisa Genova is a neuroscientist, as well as a skilled storyteller and fantastic explainer. She combines those skills beautifully in Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting.

She clearly explains how memories are formed, and the different types of long-term memories (what we remember happening, facts and knowledge, plans, and muscle memory). She also offers practical suggestions for improving memory.

The book describes the differences between the normal effects of aging and Alzheimer’s disease—information that is both comforting and enlightening.

I’ve read plenty of books about learning, memory, and Alzheimer’s, but none that explain it as simply and clearly as this one. Oh, and it’s well written and engaging.

It’s earned a permanent spot on my bookshelf, to refer back to … in case I forget the details.

This book teaches us the science of memory and for people middle-aged that are stressed and overwhelmed and somehow thinking that they are losing their minds- it's great to learn that memory is affected by many outside factors like emotions, sleeping habits, stress, and the world around us.

Lisa Genova's REMEMBER is an engrossing book that made me feel like I'd had a multi-appointment, deep-dive conversation with my medical specialist about memory. I found it fitting that I read the final pages while sitting my doctor's waiting room.

I don't know if anyone goes through life without knowing and loving someone who gets Alzheimer's or dementia. Or who worries about navigating those potential realities themselves. I highly recommend this book for everyone. I only just finished it yesterday, and I've already told several people that they need to read it. In this book, Genova combines practical tips with examples, studies, and personal stories that make for the kind of read that's both academically enriching while also being enjoyable and interesting.

She address the normal "forgetting" that occurs with our memories, at what point we should be worried, and provides lists (I love lists of actionable items!) of things we can do NOW to help our brains thrive. She also gives practical tips on how to strengthen your memory-keeping skills and potentially stave off the effects of Alzheimer's as long as possible. That said, I loved, most of all, her compassionate and hopeful insight for what it DOES and DOESN'T mean to have Alzheimer's--this idea that memory is both a big deal, and not a big deal at all.

My favorite thing is that at the end, acknowledging that our memories are faulty, she repeats the main ideas of every chapter in a paragraph, and she was right... there were already things I'd forgotten! There were so many things I high-lighted to come back to.

Thanks to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book!

I have loved all of Lisa Genova’s books and was very excited to read this non fiction book about memory. I learned so many things from her easy going style and found myself sharing tidbits with friends in casual conversation. I especially love to reference TOT now. I find that happening more and more. A great read for those who like accessible scientific non fiction.

#netgalley #remember

Remember is a nonfiction book about the science of memory and why we forget. If you are like me and you wonder if you are losing it or just getting older, this book may put your mind at ease. It is short and to the point but with the humour and clear concise writing I love in Lisa Genova’s novels as well. She has some funny and relatable examples of how her memory fails her at times too.

Available in bookstores on March 23/21.

Remember: The Science of Memory and the Art of Forgetting by Lisa Genova is a guide to our memory that spells out the science using plain language and descriptive examples. The book is broken into three sections: How We Remember, Why We Forget, and Improve or Repair. Genova does a fantastic job identifying all of those funny things our brains do and giving scientific names and context to them. She explains why our brains are designed to both remember, but also forget the majority of our lives. We're likely to forget our day to day routine unless something special occurs, while we are incredibly likely to remember unique or emotional events in our lives. The last part of the book gives helpful tips and suggestions for improving memory and taking care of our brains. Overall, an interesting and helpful resource for any age demographic.

Thank you Rodale Inc. / Harmony and NetGalley for providing this ARC.

All of us have experienced that moment when we can't find a word or name, right on the tip of our tongue, no matter how hard we try. (Oh, maybe at 3 am it will come to us suddenly when it is too late to use it in the context we intended, but at least it came to us. ) But at the time, don't we all have that awful feeling we might be losing our memory? Is it dementia or other mind robbing disease?

If questions like that are taking up more of your time as you age, or if a family member is lapsing and we are wondering about their memories, the Remember is the book to read now. The author has first hand experience from her family and is also the author of "Still Alice" about a woman who starts losing her memory at a younger age. It was made into a movie and won awards, possibly due to the caring way she portrayed her character as someone we can all relate to or walk in her shoes with the wondering.

The author breaks down the components necessary to form memories that are able to be retrieved and shows us that not all the things we forget are really forgotten if the memory never got remembered in the first place. The writing style makes it easy for us to understand and interpret in our own lives. Yes, it will help take away some of your worries about your remembering, but it will also teach you to make better foundations for your memories whether they are needed to pass an exam in school or give a speech or just plain old walking into a room yet forgetting why you entered.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy in exchange for an honest review. I am very glad I read this book and appreciate so much how Ms Genova will help so many after reading her book.

Remember is a book that discusses the many dimensions of memory. It’s filled with technical information which might confuse you at first until she explains them through personal examples. By the end of the book, you will have a through understanding of how memories in the brain works.

Remember was fascinating and easy-to-read. I thought that Lisa Genova did a great job describing how memory works in ways that made sense and kept me engaged. She provided a lot of different examples that I think will relate to most everyone in some way, which helps the reader understand the brain and how our memories work.

It is interesting to know how our memories are impacted by various things - context, sleep, location - and how we are not alone in our forgetfulness, like "why did I come in the kitchen?" If you've read some of Lisa Genova's fiction, like Still Alice, or have known anyone with dementia or Alzheimer's, this book will help shed more light on how things work and what you can do to help your brain function well in to old age.

Are you wanting to know your memory better? Do you want to insure yourself if you are looking at dementia or just normal forgetfulness?
How does a person help give a boost towards having that better collaboration with their memory? Author Lisa Genova takes you on a path of encouraging ways for a person to make conscious efforts to watch for the pitfalls of distractions and center on creating key pointed memory snapshots. This book has so many different things that will aid a person that I had to read it three times to digest everything!

I received an advanced copy from NetGalley and these are my willingly given thoughts and opinions.

How to remember why do we forget is what Lisa Genova, a neuroscientist, discusses in this book. She talks about how memories are made and how memories are made and how we retrieve them. She talks about how can learn to improve your memory and let go of your fears. Great information, great writing.

Having read Still Alice by author Lisa Genova, I was curious to read her non-fiction book on the science of memory. I found Remember to be incredibly accessible to average readers and almost as riveting as her novel. I loved how her style was conversational, and although she discussed scientific research, it was presented with practical examples so that anyone could understand it.

I felt oddly comforted to learn that forgetting is quite natural, even for young people. One of the biggest takeaways for me is that a person needs to be paying attention in order to build a memory. Therefore, in many instances of so-called forgetting, a person didn't form the memory in the first place because they were either distracted, multi-tasking, or otherwise not paying proper attention. What a relief! I'm not forgetting; I just need to pay better attention!

The book flowed in a narrative style with short chapters and a great one at the end that pulled together all of the major points in the book. Ms. Genova does discuss dementia and Alzheimer's Disease, but the focus of the book is on the capacity and limits of one's memory.

I will recommend this to readers of all ages who are interested in the science of memory, forgetting and dementia.

I thank Rodale Inc. and NetGalley for the e-arc in exchange for my honest review.

I requested this because I have loved all of Lisa Genova’s fiction novels, and I thought it would be interesting. And while it is, this book really isn’t my thing. I don’t read a ton of non-fiction, and this just really didn’t hold my interest.

I previously read and reviewed two other books by Lisa Genova which I loved, so was very excited to read this nonfiction work. Thrilled to say I was not disappointed. One would think a book about how your brain works to create, retain, manipulate or fail to recall events, to do items, etc doesn’t sound fascinating, but this book was fantastic and held my attention throughout. I learned so much and have put into practice some of the tips that she offered. I will be much more focused on my sleep habits for sure. Loved the book and will be recommending it to my friends, book club and anyone that will listen.

Why can you remember almost every detail of your wedding and almost nothing about yesterday? Why can't you remember where your car is parked? Lisa Genova, neuroscientist, answers these questions and takes us on a journey of how memories are created and maintained.

On a personal-level, I picked this book up for two reasons. One: In my late 20's, I was experiencing memory blocks. Certain sections of important memories would be temporarily blocked with no notice as to which memories would be inaccessible - gone was my recollection of my address, the name of the co-worker I sat next to and talked to daily for over a year, the name of the woman who I thought was the most beautiful in the world, how to get home, where my files were stored, who the President was (and I had a degree in Political Science). Second: Many people in my family have ADHD. ADHD has been shown to negatively impact working memory (extremely prone to forgetting name badges, homework, books, To-Go boxes, that Monday is hat day).

This book was enjoyable, and it was not overly scientific. What I mean by that it didn't have words like hyrdocortaneutroproconturtfulacil like a certain Sleep book that I had to return that Bill Gates recommended (thanks again, Bill!). Instead Lisa broke down a very complicated topic into TED talk language with actionable steps on what you can do to improve your memory. The book was fairly short and to the point.

Unfortunately, this book really oversimplified memory and oversimplified memory issues. You can have a memory problem and not have Alzheimer's but this book seemed to have a short decision-tree: Alzheimer's or you're fine. This dissuades people with legitimate memory issues from seeking help, and I wish that it was written in a more collaborative form. Let's return for a moment to my personal example of memory blocks in my late 20's. Was this normal forgetting that Lisa would have us believe? No, it wasn't. After seeing many doctors, I was finally diagnosed with gluten intolerance. This was also why the memory block would be removed when I stopped eating gluten. When I permanently stopped eating gluten, all of the abnormal forgetting stopped. This deeply concerns me that neurologists and neuroscientists continue to tell people that they are just A- OK if they don't have Alzheimer's and that simply may not be true. Additionally, more and more people have ADHD which impacts working memory. One of the things that the author did not emphasize enough is some of the frequently used coping strategies. Do you forget where you put your car? Simple. Always park in the same spot. Even if there is a magical spot in the front by the door. Park in your usual spot. Leave your name badge in the cup holder of your car. If you accidently walk in the house with it on, go back immediately (do nothing else) and put it into the cup holder. Technology is also improving where you can locate your lost phone, backpack, or watch all with the click of a button. It would have been really helpful to have a chapter dedicated to the future of remembering and also some additional memory disorders/problems.

Overall, this book was a worthy read. I enjoyed sharing tidbits with my family, tested them on their ability to spot the real penny among the fake, and learned a few tips to try. Looking forward to future books by this author.

Have you read any of Lisa Geneva’s novels? I have read and loved both Still Alice and Left Neglected. The author has a PhD in Neuroscoence from Harvard and does an amazing job of bringing to life stories about characters with neurological conditions.

This book is non-fiction and takes her expertise and writing skills and teaches us about the science of both memory and forgetting. It’s hard to put down, and I guarantee you will better understand how memory works and increase your awareness on actions you can take to positively impact your memory. It will also help you understand how and why we forget and when to be concerned.

One of my takeaways is that we remember what we pay attention to- so if we pay attention to the positive in our lives, that will impact what we remember. Which in turn will impact our general attitude (I think)- or it might be a chicken and egg scenario- are we glass half empty or glass half full and how does that influence what we notice/focus on?

There is also a whole section on what we can do to improve (or at least maintain) our current memory. Spoiler alert- sleep is powerful. I highlighted quite a bit and look forward to going back to this book for reference. I will definitely be recommending it to friends and family.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.

Really loved this book I would love to purchase a hard copy and add it to my collection. Would easily rate it 5/5

This is a fascinating book with a lotThis of valuable information. Written in an easy-going style, it makes some complex subjects easy to understand. Genova weaves in personal anecdotes which add to the conversational style of the writing. She also uses humor and cloaks the scientific data in easy to understand language.

I think we all - as we age - begin to worry about losing our memory and this book is very reassuring in pointing out the normal aspects that shouldn't cause us worry. I really enjoyed this book and got a lot out of it.

I've read several books on memory before, but I was excited to read this from Lisa Genova, who has the appropriate background in neuroscience, but also the background of writing science well. I believe this is the fourth book on memory I've read, and as such, there is quite a bit of repetition that I've heard before- so if the science of memory is an ongoing interest of yours, be aware of that. But even so, the difference here is just how well Genova illustrates examples and fully engages you with the subject. There were definitely things I "learned" from previous books that were now "encoded" (see, Lisa, I learned!) into my memory much better because of this book.

As far I've read, this is the current definitive version of memory science you should read, if you are looking for a brief, readable overview of how memory and forgetting works. If you want the nitty gritty science, hey, grab one of those textbooks. But if you want to learn a good deal about this subject in a short amount of time, pick up this book!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the free copy in exchange for an honest review.