Recently finished two good ones....

Still Alice by Lisa Genova, is a novel written like a memoir of a woman with early-onset Alzheimers. It seemed to be well-researched, and may offer some excellent insight into the experiences of a person with Alzheimers who attends with awareness to what is happening to them. At times I felt concern that there was an implication in the novel that Alzheimers, especially early-onset Alzheimers, is more tragic for bright, brainy people than for most of us (The protagonist is a PhD Harvard professor, a cognitive psychologist who is world renown for her research in the area of linquistics. Ultimately, however, I decided that was not true, and that function of Alice's credentials is to give credence to her observations and understanding about what is happening to her as the disease progresses. The voice sounds authentic, though only a person with Alzheimers can say for sure. The family reactions and responses over time to the changes in Alice are very realistic, informative, and compassionate.

Paths to Glory by Jeffrey Archer, is a fictionalized biography of George Mallory, and his attempts, probably but not provably successful, to be the first man to summit Mt. Everest. A very good read.