Lisa Genova

illustration

Christopher Seufert

SELECTED WOEKS

illustration Left Neglected (2011)

illustration Still Alice (2009)

Inspiration Life! I only have about fifteen hours a week to write (and often less as minutes here and hours there are siphoned off to my kids, Still Alice promotion, and Alzheimer's speaking events), so that leaves lots of time for living. I believe that a fully lived life is a blessing for the author and the best inspiration for writing that is fully alive.

Getting Unstuck I read and reread books that keep me psychologically “on path” when I write. I read books like The Artist's Way by Julia Cameron, Fearless Creating by Eric Maisel, Bird by Bird: Some Instructions on Writing and Life by Anne Lamott, Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within by Natalie Goldberg, Wild Mind: Living the Writer's Life by Natalie Goldberg, and On Writing by Stephen King. And if I'm feeling stuck, I get out a notebook and write a couple of pages of unedited stream of consciousness. That usually works to break things open. Get the pen moving, and sometimes some great pieces of wisdom come out. One day recently, stuck and somewhat terrified about writing Left Neglected, I scribbled this:

Lisa, write your book. Let it come through you, however imperfectly. Don't judge it yet. Just get it down. Believe in this story. Have faith that it will come through you. Write it down. Don't be afraid. Don't think about all 300 pages. Think only about the next scene, the next five pages. Don't make it hard. Enjoy it! Be brave and write the next scene.

Readers Frequently Ask The question I receive most from readers about Still Alice really isn't so much a question, but rather a comment that then sparks many heated questions and comments. The comment has been made in many ways, but the gist of it is, “I'm still really mad at John,” and then the conversation really gets going. Was he too selfish? Did he make the right decision? Did he make a fair decision? Did he and Alice have a good marriage? Did he truly love her? What would you have done? I always tell readers to remember that, like all of us, John is flawed. But I have great empathy for John, and I understand his love for Alice, his denial, his suffering as a caregiver, and his rational if flawed decision.

Authors Who Have Influenced My Writing

illustration Oliver Sacks. In fact, The Man Who Mistook His Wife For a Hat was really the spark that ignited my interest in neuroscience to begin with. He has said, “In examining disease, we gain wisdom about anatomy and physiology and biology. In examining the person with disease, we gain wisdom about life.” That's what I hope to accomplish with my writing.

illustration Brunonia Barry. She originally self-published her riveting novel, The Lace Reader, and then went on to obtain a huge book deal with William Morrow. Still Alice was self-published when I heard about her book deal, and so she gave me a concrete example of success. Her achievement fueled my perseverance and gave me the courage to dream big.

illustration Julia Fox Garrison. I love her memoir, Don't Leave Me This Way. Her writing is honest and deeply moving. Her words can make me laugh out loud on one page and go looking for Kleenex on the next.

ALICE'S WHITE CHOCOLATE CHALLAH PUDDING

Makes 6 servings

From The Figs Table: More Than 100 Recipes for Pizzas, Pastas, Salads, and Desserts by Todd English and Sally Sampson (Simon & Schuster, 1998)

This is the dessert in Still Alice that the title character forgot how to make on Christmas Eve. I chose this particular recipe for a couple of reasons. The first is that my friend Judy and I have been obsessed with this dessert from Todd English's Figs restaurant for years. It's rich, smooth, and luscious. I don't care for white chocolate, and I'm not crazy for bread pudding, but somehow the combination is divine!

I also selected it because of my own experience with forgetting. It's an easy recipe to make and an easy one to memorize, especially if you make it often. But every time I make this pudding, I get hung up on the number of eggs. Seven? Eight? Nine? How many are yolk only? Hold on, let me check. And I have to look it up.

Throughout Still Alice, I tried to illustrate the difference between normal forgetting and forgetting due to Alzheimer's. When is forgetting a name, a word, an appointment, or a recipe normal, and when is it not? I realize this can be a scary and troubling question to pose, but I promise there is nothing scary or troubling about this dessert. Enjoy!

7 large egg yolks

2 large eggs

2 teaspoons vanilla extract

3 cups heavy cream

1 cup milk

½ cup sugar

10 ounces white chocolate (about 2 cups chopped)

4 cups challah cubes, approximately 1½ inches square (about 1 loaf, crusts removed)

1 Preheat oven to 350°F.

2 Place the egg yolks, eggs, and vanilla in a small bowl and mix to combine. Set aside.

3 Place the cream, milk, and sugar in a 2-quart saucepan over medium-high heat and cook until scalded (when bubbles begin to form around the edges and it begins to steam, but has not quite come to a boil), about 7 minutes. Add the white chocolate and mix until fully melted. Gradually add the egg mixture in a slow, steady stream, whisking continuously.

4 Place the bread cubes in an 8″ × 8″ × 2″ pan. Slowly pour the egg-cream mixture over the bread cubes. (If cubes bob to the top, pour more slowly to allow time for the mixture to soak into the bread.) Use your hands or the back of a spoon to press the cubes down and let rest for 15 minutes, or until mixture is entirely absorbed.

5 Cover with aluminum foil and place in a larger pan filled halfway with very hot water. Transfer to the oven and bake until firm and the custard does not show up on your finger when you touch the middle, about 1 hour and 15 minutes. After 30 minutes, check on the water level, and replenish water if necessary to keep the level at the halfway point. Serve warm with fresh berries, caramel sauce, or raspberry sauce (see recipe).

RASPBERRY SAUCE

Makes 1 cup

From The Figs Table: More Than 100 Recipes for Pizzas, Pastas, Salads, and Desserts by Todd English and Sally Sampson (Simon & Schuster, 1998)

4 cups fresh or frozen raspberries, thawed

2 teaspoons fresh lemon juice

6 tablespoons sugar

1 Purée the raspberries, lemon juice, and sugar in a blender and process until smooth. Pour the mixture into a strainer and press the solids through to strain the liquid. Discard the solids.

2 Add water to thin sauce if necessary. Serve immediately, or cover and refrigerate up to one week.

NANA'S CREAM PUFFS

Makes 24 cream puffs

Still Alice was inspired by my grandmother, Angelina Genova, who was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease when she was eighty-five. Although she lost her history and couldn't understand who we were or why we were there (she told people her daughter Mary was a homeless woman who'd wandered in to live with her), there were parts of my grandmother that never left her. As she always had, she loved lively company. We're a loud, Italian family. She delighted in having us there, sitting around her kitchen table, eating, laughing to tears, telling stories. And she remained good-natured and good-humored, willing to participate. Here's one of my favorite exchanges:

Aunt Mary: Come on, Ma, we're going to the movies.

Nana: Okay, I don't know who you are, but I'm coming!

The reasons why her family loved her, the reasons why we are connected, disappeared for her, but they didn't for us. We continued to love her, and she accepted it. She understood our hugs and kisses and smiles and returned them with great enthusiasm. I know she felt included and loved until the moment she died.

My grandmother made the best cream puffs. In fact, she won $25 from Parade Magazine in 1969 for her recipe. Someone in my family makes her cream puffs for every holiday, and we still fight over who gets the last one.

Note: These will keep if made in the morning and served later in the day, but they become soggy after a day or two in the fridge.

One stick of butter may be substituted for the shortening.

If you're pressed for time, you can make a quick version of the filling. Cook 1 box of vanilla pudding (not instant; with whole milk), and let cool in the refrigerator. Add 1 teaspoon of vanilla to 1 cup of heavy cream, and beat until thick. Fold cream into pudding. Done!

FOR THE PUFFS

1 cup all-purpose flour

¼ teaspoon salt

½ cup butter flavor solid vegetable shortening (see note)

1 cup water

4 large eggs, at room temperature

FOR THE CUSTARD FILLING

½ cup granulated sugar

5½ tablespoons cake flour

½ teaspoon salt

2 cups whole milk

2 large eggs, at room temperature

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1 cup heavy cream

Confectioners' sugar, for sprinkling (optional)

1 Preheat oven to 425°F. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.

2 To make the puffs: Combine flour and salt in a small bowl. Place shortening and water in a medium saucepan, and bring to a boil. Add flour mixture all at once and stir vigorously until mixture balls up and becomes quite dry. Remove from heat.

3 Transfer mixture to medium bowl of electric mixer. Add eggs one at a time and beat at high speed until mixture becomes a smooth paste.

4 Drop batter by tablespoonful on baking sheets, placing 2 inches apart. Bake for 15 minutes, then reduce heat to 375°F and bake for an additional 15 minutes. Do not open the oven during cooking, except during final minutes if needed to check on puffs. Puffs are done when they are well browned, and moisture can no longer be seen on the tops. Transfer puffs to wire rack to cool.

5 To make the custard filling: Sift together sugar, cake flour, and salt. In medium saucepan, heat milk over medium heat. Whisk flour mixture into warm milk and heat, stirring, until thick and bubbly, about 3 minutes. Remove from heat.

6 In a separate medium bowl of an electric mixer, beat eggs until frothy. Add milk mixture to eggs, and mix well. Return mixture to saucepan and cook over medium heat for 3 minutes.

7 Remove from heat and transfer mixture to clean bowl. Whisk in vanilla. Rub butter on piece of plastic wrap and place wrap butter side down on top of the custard (to prevent a skin from forming). Chill thoroughly in refrigerator.

8 In separate bowl of an electric mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat cream on high speed until thick. Fold whipped cream into custard.

9 To assemble the cream puffs: Use a serrated knife to slice the top third from each puff. Remove any excess “skin” from inside of puff. Fill with about 2 tablespoons of filling, until full but not overflowing, and replace top. (Any extra filling is wonderful on fresh fruit.) Sprinkle with confectioners' sugar if desired. Serve immediately (see note).