September's 1book140 Selection: 'The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks'

(If you're just tuning in, please check out our 1book140 primer here.)

In a few days we'll enter the fourth month of 1book140, The Atlantic's big, worldwide read-a-long. The occasion marks the first time we've tackled a non-fiction book. 1book140 follower Liz Iverson helped us narrow dozens of nominations down to an enlarged shortlist of eight titles, but Rebecca Skloot's The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks came out strong and never looked back, taking 28 percent of the vote out of a killer field. Simon Winchester's The Professor and the Madman: A Tale of Murder, Insanity, and the Making of the Oxford English Dictionary came in a distant second with 18 percent. Skloot's book is chock full of discussion points and hot-button issues, so I'm looking forward to some lively debate this month. We'll begin discussing the book right after Labor Day weekend, on Tuesday, September 6th, so you'll have plenty of time to buy the book. As always, happy reading!