The anonymous author of this informative work begins by explaining she would prefer to be open about her identity but is keeping it veiled at the request of family members, including one who lived with HIV and eventually died of AIDS. This narrative moves back and forth between a straightforward question-and-answer format and the author’s moving account of her brother-in-law’s battle with the disease. The Q & A presents timely, relevant information about HIV/AIDS—the difference between them, how HIV is and is not transmitted, the emotional impact of a family member or a friend’s diagnosis, the secrecy that can still exist around the disease, types of treatment, legal issues, and more. The personal story, in which the author includes her own response to events as they unfolded, spans more than ten years from the mid-1990s to 2006. In addition to personalizing her message of the importance of compassion, it also offers the opportunity to look at the recent history of HIV/AIDS from both a medical and a social perspective. Places to go for more information, a glossary, and a bibliography complete this volume written to engage older children and teens. (Ages 10–15)