Written by Paige Rawl with Ali Benjamin
Paige Rawl’s story is impressive. Her memoir outlines her life and the awakenings she has along the way. Born HIV-positive, her mother and doctor love, support and help her every way they can. However, at school, once the word is out, she is emotionally, verbally and physically bullied.
She wins beauty pageants, sings, is a great soccer player, cheerleader etc. The way she picks herself up and carries on is amazing. She has two true friends who help her get up and keep going. She chooses to be positive. She understands that “humans are afraid of what they don’t understand. And we are at our absolute worst when we are afraid.”
Her life is dedicated to helping those who have been bullied. She hopes to stop the suicides of kids who can’t take the bullying anymore. She’s lobbied for laws that get administrators “to stand up for every one of their students exactly the way a child would hope adults would.” She hopes to make cruelty a thing of the past! She would like to unite everyone that’s “different.” Who isn’t different in one way or another?
Review by Debbie Robinson, Granite Connection High Media Center
Rating: ★★★★★ (5 stars)
Interest Level: Grades 9-12
Author Website: http://www.paigerawl.com/
Positive: Surviving My Bullies, Finding Hope, and Living to Change the World
Written by Paige Rawl with Ali Benjamin
HarperCollins
272 pages
Release Date: August 26, 2014
ISBN: 9780062342515 (hardcover)
Sounds like a powerful book.