Being Positive gives us the clearest picture we have of what life is like for people who have been diagnosed HIV positive. Based upon unique in-depth interviews with a broad cross-section of patients, the book is remarkable for its candor and compassionate analysis. The people speak for themselves. “Through these pages,” Robert Klitzman writes, “I have tried to present a picture—a group portrait—and a sense of the fabric and texture of these individual’s lives. Their stories taught me much about how people find meaning and cope with apparently overwhelming difficulties.” In looking for patterns in these lives, Dr. Klitzman has focused first on the problems these new patients face—the uncertainties, losses, and taboos; then on how they adapt—their new life in “HIV-land,” their spiritual beliefs, work and volunteerism, family relations, drugs and sex, and denial psychology. Finally he considers the implications of this major new medical problem and how it has forced us to examine so many personal, political, and institutional issues surrounding illness and the threat of death. Being Positive is not only a humanizing antidote to statistical studies of HIV and AIDS, it is an important benchmark in understanding the lives and experiences of the people who are affected.

An unforgettable picture of what extremity looks like...intense. -- Clifford Geertz, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton
I know of no higher praise than to name a book necessary. Being Positive is that and more. -- Fenton Johnson, author of Geography of the Heart
These are compelling stories...reminds us that we have so much to learn about life and death. -- Abraham Verghese, MD, MACP, Professor of Medicine, Stanford University; recipient of the National Humanities Medal; author of Cutting for Stone
Arresting work...should be widely read by practitioners, researchers, and policymakers. -- Arthur Kleinman M.D., Harvard Medical School * London Times *

Robert Klitzman is a psychiatrist at Columbia University and author of A Year-long Night and In a House of Dreams and Glass, both highly praised accounts of his medical and psychiatric training.