In the novel, ​The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks​, the mini narratives make the greater

story more informational to readers, more interesting, and more personal.

Firstly, Henrietta Lacks’ (Hela’s) story wouldn’t catch as many people's attention as it

did without background information. If the readers didn’t know that “Henrietta died in 1951

from a vicious case of cervical cancer, he told us. But before she died, a surgeon took samples of

her tumor and put them in a petri dish,” (Skloot 3-4). The reader can infer Hela is significant

because they knew she’d be special to use later, so they sampled her cells. This use of suspense

in the prologue draws in the audience yearning to learn more.

Without the other mini narratives, the novel wouldn’t be entertaining. The author uses

vivid details when she states that “David lacks sat behind the wheel of his old Buick, watching

the rainfall. He was parked under a towering oak tree outside Johns Hopkins Hospital with three

of his children…” (Skloot 13). One can infer that this is significant because without the visual

imagery and situational awareness, it would be a very bland and basic way of saying a man is

waiting in a car outside a hospital with his kids waiting for his wife. It adds drama and emotion

to the scene to appeal to the reader’s senses.

Finally, it makes the informational and relatable novel more personal so readers will

enjoy the pleasure of reading more. For example, the book talks of how her daughters and family

reacted to her death. This is significant because readers can relate to a loved ones terrible passing

that they thought could’ve been reversed. This makes Henrietta’s story less specific while still

representing how her amazing cells have saved countless lives.

Overall, Skloot’s writing style is beneficial to its diction by making it informational,

interesting, and relatable to readers.