Who, you might ask, is Henrietta Lacks (1920-1951) and why is she the subject of a book? On the surface, this short-lived African American Virginian seems an unlikely candidate for immortality. The most remarkable thing about her, some might argue, is that she had ten children during her thirty-one years on earth. Actually, we all owe Ms. Lacks a great debt and some of us owe her our lives. As Rebecca Skloot tells us in this riveting human story, Henrietta was the involuntary donor of cells from her cancerous tumors that have been cultured to create an immortal cell line for medical research. These so-called HeLa cells have not only generated billions of dollars for the medical industry; they have helped uncover secrets of cancers, viruses, fertilization, cloning, and gene mapping. A vivid, exciting story; a 2010 Discover Great New Books finalist; a surprise bestseller in hardcover. -Barnes & Noble
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HeLa
John Hopkins University Article
Character list
Immediate Lacks FamilyDavid “Day” Lacks—Henrietta’s husband and cousin
David Jr. “Sonny” Lacks—Henrietta and Day’s third child
Deborah “Dale” Lacks—Henrietta and Day’s fourth child
Eliza Lacks Pleasant—Henrietta’s mother. She died when Henrietta was four.
Elsie Lacks (born Lucille Elsie Pleasant)— Henrietta’s second born and eldest daughter. She was institutionalized
due to epilepsy and died at age fifteen.
Gladys Lacks—Henrietta’s sister, who disapproved of Henrietta’s marriage to Day
Johnny Pleasant—Henrietta’s father. He left his ten children when their mother died.
Lawrence Lacks—Henrietta and Day’s firstborn child
Loretta Pleasant—Henrietta’s birth name
Tommy Lacks—Henrietta and Day’s grandfather who raised both of them
Zakariyya Bari Abdul Rahman (born Joe Lacks)— Henrietta and Day’s fifth child. Henrietta was diagnosed with
cervical cancer shortly after his birth.
Extended Lacks Family
Albert Lacks— Henrietta’s white great-grandfather. He had five children by a former slave named Maria and left
part of the Lacks plantation to them. This section became known as “Lacks Town.”
Alfred “Cheetah” Carter—Deborah’s first husband. The marriage was abusive and ended in divorce.
Alfred Jr.—Deborah and Cheetah’s firstborn child and Little Alfred’s father
Bobette Lacks— Lawrence’s wife. She helped raise Lawrence’s siblings after Henrietta’s death and advocated
for them when she discovered they were being abused.