was initially a bit hesitant about picking up Still Alice.  The story of a 50-year-old Harvard professor who learns she has early-onset Alzheimer's intrigued me, but I also know the empath in me struggles with sad books.  I took a chance, though, and picked it up, and I'm so glad I did. One of my favorite things about reading is the fact that you get to see things from a perspective you otherwise wouldn't experience; for a little while, you get to live a life you otherwise wouldn't live.  I feel like this is especially rewarding with Still Alice.  I've known people with Alzheimers, but this is the closest I can come to experiencing this tragic disease without actually having it myself.  It was a lesson in empathy and compassion as I lived it through Alice's eyes.  I experienced the confusion and disorientation of the early stages and the dense fog of the later stages.  It often felt like trudging blindly or waking up to random snippets of conversation, having no concept of time.  I felt her anguish in those early stages as she looked upon her loved ones, knowing that at some point, she would not remember them.  If you have a loved one who suffers from this disease or if you simply want to gain a new perspective, I highly recommend this book.  I finished it a month ago, and I still think of it daily.