This book gave me everything that I expected out of it. Heart wrenching, raw and real, Left Neglected is an empowering story about remembering what matters most in life. I have a few thoughts about this book, so let’s jump right in. 

 

First, I would not feel right about doing this review without pointing out the obvious regarding the plot. Yes, it is quite similar to Still Alice, Genova’s other book. In both stories, a successful career woman has her life changed forever by a diagnosis and has to learn how to live in her new condition. While this can easily sound like an easy cash grab for Genova, I understand why she published both stories. They may be similar, but I had an incredibly different experience reading Still Alice than I did reading this book. I think Left Neglected decides to take the route of love and familial connection as the main message, whereas Still Alice seemed to be more about coming to terms with the fact that you do not have to be the most important person in the room in order to be successful. So ultimately, it is worthwhile to read both of these books. 

 

One particular element of the story that I loved is that Sarah is a mother of three very young children, rather than children who are already grown. This factor emphasized the idea that Sarah not only had to learn to do her job differently, but also that she still had to find a way to do the things for which her young children depended on her. It was also exceptionally heartwarming to see her individual relationship with each of her children, and to watch each relationship grow stronger throughout the book. 

 

I also loved the setting of this book, particularly the parts in Vermont. I read so many books set in the spring or summer, but I do have a soft spot for books that use winter and the snow as a plot device. It absolutely added to the symbolism in the story to have the story go back and forth between Welmont and Vermont at critical points for plot and character development. 

 

For characters, I really did love the characters and the dynamics between them that this story held. There was a moment where I was not sure how I felt about Bob, but ultimately, each character developed in a very realistic and encouraging way. In particular, watching Sarah and even Charlie go through their individual journeys was so inspiring and uplifting. 

 

The one thing that stopped me from giving this book 5 stars was its pacing. After the first hundred pages, the pacing came to a screeching halt and slowed right down. It did eventually pick back up, but the next seventy five pages really crawled on. 

 

Overall, Left Neglected by Lisa Genova turned out to be exactly what I thought it would be. Nothing surprised me, but it was still really excellent. It can become a little hard to read at times just because of how real it is. ⅘ stars.