The Shattered Glass Effect by Creative Anthologists
By Beverly Jackson • Apr 4th, 2010 • Category: Book Review 2010 •
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Everyone says it is not going to happen to them. But the 10 stories in The Shattered Glass Effect by Creative Anthologists set out to show that getting a positive HIV/AIDS diagnosis can happen, if you are not aware of how your emotions can lead to actions that will forever change your life. We all hear the facts and assume that we will not become one of the statistics, but the authors in the anthology set out to show you differently through the actions of the story characters, and each of us will either see ourselves or someone we care about in these stories.
I thought the title of the anthology was very appropriate as I heard glass shattering each time the HIV/AIDS positive test results were announced. I commend the authors for in stripping away the layers of pretense in their stories and exposing the truth, no matter how painful. The variety of the story situations kept the anthology fresh. While all of the stories followed a similar format in telling the situation and an outcome, they were all equally strong in their messages and well-written. In Living Proof, Gloria Dotson-Lewis excellently tells the story in the language of a sheltered teenager who goes from thinking that sneaking out the house to a party is risky and is thrilled when she thinks that she has gotten away with it until she finds out she is pregnant and her plans for college get waylaid. And then she learns that she is HIV positive after giving birth to her daughter. I cheered in Angel’s Destiny when pregnant Taye left her philandering abusive boyfriend, then cried when she found out that both she and her daughter, Angel, were both diagnosed as HIV positive. The power of positive love and learning to take responsibility for your own actions is demonstrated in Cut Up a Thousand Times by L.J. Wilson. Hopefully, these stories will shock us into taking actions to stop/prevent African Americans from being 50% of the new HIV/AIDS cases.
I recommend this book to everyone and hopefully reading the stories will allow for more open discussions on actions that can be taken to help prevent new HIV/AID cases.
This book was provided by the publisher for review purposes.
Reviewed by Beverly Jackson
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Beverly Jackson is is a recent transplant to the Charlotte, North Carolina area. She is an avid reader, and there are very few times you will catch her without a book. Several years ago, she changed her dining room into a library with wall to ceiling bookshelves. She loves sharing her enthusiasm for reading with others and writing book reviews is a way she shares her thoughts. For the last twenty years, she has worked in the technology field for an international consulting firm, but is easing her way into retirement. Her biggest accomplishment is raising two daughters to be productive citizens of society, and they have blessed her with five wonderful grandchildren. Some of her other interest are traveling, watching sports and practicing yoga. And her latest toy is her Kindle which allows her to carry around her library in her purse.
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