Voices that care : stories and encouragements for people with AIDS/HIV and those who love them /

``I am now able to hear a concert or see a fireworks display and appreciate the beauty . . . I know this may sound odd, but I would never have wanted to miss all of that.'' So wrote AIDS victim Mark Gifford shortly before he succumbed to the disease at age 34. His observations, along with those of others who have died from or are living with AIDS or a positive HIV diagnosis, offer significant comfort. Whether teenaged or elderly, an AIDS-infected parent or an AIDS-infected child, gay or straight, famous (such as the late actor Brad Davis, whose story is told by his wife) or not, the people included here mine hope, peace, meaning, even joy from their experiences. With their testimony, Hitchens ( Fifty Things You Can Do About AIDS ), himself HIV-positive, delivers inspiration and reassurance. (Nov.) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

The author of Fifty Things You Can Do About AIDS (Lowell House, 1992) has collected personal narratives from people affected by AIDS/HIV to help others going through the frightening experience. In the opening section, 23 celebrities offer statements to people with AIDS. The remainder of the book is made up of inspiring interviews (including some letters and poems) by those living with AIDS/HIV, some who have subsequently died, and/or their lovers, parents, spouses, children, and siblings. Stigma, emotional trauma, and their own mortality are dealt with courageously and often humorously. Recommended for popular medical collections.-- James E. Van Buskirk, San Francisco P.L. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.