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In the Absence of Angels
In 1981, Elizabeth Glaser received blood transfusions following the birth of her daughter Ariel. Then, in 1986, two years after her second child, Jake, was born, tests showed that Ariel had AIDS, contracted through breast-feeding. Elizabeth and Jake tested HIV positive, and Glaser's husband Paul, of TV's Starsky and Hutch fame, is today free of the virus that killed Ariel at age seven.
Well aware of the stigma of AIDS, the Glasers retreated behind a wall of secrecy to protect their family. Only when the National Enquirer threatened to invade that privacy, did the Glasers "go public". Despite the book's title, In the Absence of Angels is a heartwarming story filled with angels - generous, caring, imaginative people who listened and helped.
280 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1991
7 people are currently reading
332 people want to read
About the author
Elizabeth Glaser
9 books4 followersElizabeth Glaser, a former teacher, was a major American AIDS activist and child advocate. She was married to actor and director Paul Michael Glaser. While Giving birth to her first child, Ariel, she hemorrhaged and was transfused with seven pints of blood. Four years later she found out she had been infected with the AIDS virus. She had unknowingly passed the virus to her daughter through breast milk and to her second child, Jake, during pregnancy. Glaser co-founded the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation in 1988. Glaser's work raised public awareness about HIV infection in children. Her foundation became the global leader in the fight to end AIDS in children both domestically and globally. Her son, Jake, carries on his mother's legacy by his continued work with the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation.
Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
Librarian’s note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
July 4, 2016
Read many years ago. Beautifully written heartbreaking story.
June 9, 2011
Elizabeth Glaser chronicled her experience, her emotions, in an incredible autobiography in 1991, “In the Absence of Angels”. In it she gives a moving, detailed look into her family’s struggle with HIV/AIDS. Please take the time to read it.
In 1981, while giving birth to her daughter, Ariel, she was transfused with several units of blood, all of which were later determined to be contaminated with HIV. Four years later, Ariel developed AIDS from breastfeeding, Elizabeth and her son, Jake, were also infected, only her husband, Paul Michael Glaser, remained uninfected.
Elizabeth, sick herself, gives an incredible moving account of Ariel’s illness and death as she lobbied Capitol Hill for funding and pediatric clinical trials of AZT in an effort to save her still-healthy son, Jake and give hope to all HIV infected children in the world.
In The absence of Angels is an incredible journey and an inspirational read of what any ONE can do to make a difference for others!
I highly recommend finding a copy! It also was available as an audio book.
One of my favorite philanthropic charity foundations is, in fact, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) which was founded in 1988 by Elizabeth Glaser, an incredible woman who is above and beyond the ‘definition’ of ‘hero’…Elizabeth Glaser. She brought hope and change for children and families around the world with her undaunted, unflagged efforts and achievements in aiding the scientific community in their research for mother-to-child transmission and drug studies for children! She turned an incredible family tragedy into a positive mission, a philosophy and a way of ‘being’ that fits into every aspect of being human and how we can and must live together to unite ourselves as one. Her mission of hope and of being the change that you want to see in the world is of most importance in today’s society, now more than ever. Through research, advocacy, and prevention and treatment programs, the EGPAF has tremendously improved the lives of millions…especially in the preventable area of mother-to-child transmission, an amazing gift and contribution to our world.
One of my favorite quotes of hers:
“If we can share our wisdom, our light, our love in the smallest of way – I know the world will be a better place. If we are not afraid to touch each others lives, hope will be our strength and love our prize.’ Elizabeth Glaser
It’s a philosophy we can all embody is so many ways!
Today, The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation continues to be a global leader in pediatric research and has received a top rating from the American Institute of Philanthropy and the “Best Charity” among many other accolades and achievements.
In 1981, while giving birth to her daughter, Ariel, she was transfused with several units of blood, all of which were later determined to be contaminated with HIV. Four years later, Ariel developed AIDS from breastfeeding, Elizabeth and her son, Jake, were also infected, only her husband, Paul Michael Glaser, remained uninfected.
Elizabeth, sick herself, gives an incredible moving account of Ariel’s illness and death as she lobbied Capitol Hill for funding and pediatric clinical trials of AZT in an effort to save her still-healthy son, Jake and give hope to all HIV infected children in the world.
In The absence of Angels is an incredible journey and an inspirational read of what any ONE can do to make a difference for others!
I highly recommend finding a copy! It also was available as an audio book.
One of my favorite philanthropic charity foundations is, in fact, the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) which was founded in 1988 by Elizabeth Glaser, an incredible woman who is above and beyond the ‘definition’ of ‘hero’…Elizabeth Glaser. She brought hope and change for children and families around the world with her undaunted, unflagged efforts and achievements in aiding the scientific community in their research for mother-to-child transmission and drug studies for children! She turned an incredible family tragedy into a positive mission, a philosophy and a way of ‘being’ that fits into every aspect of being human and how we can and must live together to unite ourselves as one. Her mission of hope and of being the change that you want to see in the world is of most importance in today’s society, now more than ever. Through research, advocacy, and prevention and treatment programs, the EGPAF has tremendously improved the lives of millions…especially in the preventable area of mother-to-child transmission, an amazing gift and contribution to our world.
One of my favorite quotes of hers:
“If we can share our wisdom, our light, our love in the smallest of way – I know the world will be a better place. If we are not afraid to touch each others lives, hope will be our strength and love our prize.’ Elizabeth Glaser
It’s a philosophy we can all embody is so many ways!
Today, The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation continues to be a global leader in pediatric research and has received a top rating from the American Institute of Philanthropy and the “Best Charity” among many other accolades and achievements.
December 28, 2022
I’m so glad I read this book. I knew of her family’s tragic story but I loved hearing her own words. She is so inspirational and did so much for the cause of pediatric AIDS. It was so incredible and heartwarming to watch a recent video on YouTube of her son Jake (who is also HIV positive). He is close to 40 now and doing international AIDS work. His doctor — Dr. Michael Gottlieb, a pioneer in the AIDS field, was Elizabeth’s doctor and is still Jake’s doctor! Jake spoke about the possibility of him having a healthy child with his girlfriend. It brought home the point that life is so beautiful and painful at the same time.
February 8, 2013
I read this heartbreaking book when I was 15 years old. At that time, I was still pretty ignorant about AIDS and it was not a subject that was freely discussed with kids, at least at my very conservative school in a smallish town in South Africa. In the Absence of Angels gave me an entirely new perspective on an illness that we are still trying to cure today. It was no longer a faceless disease that only affected a few people (I said I was ignorant!). This is one of the books that made me sob the most, and I've read a lot of books! The Glaser family were heroic in their willingness to share such a deeply private situation. After more than 20 years and many hundreds of books, this one remains with me.
February 2, 2016
One of the most powerful books I have ever read on the AIDS crisis. Elizabeth Glazer was an amazingly inspirational hero to me.
March 30, 2020
What an amazingly strong family!
April 21, 2025
I struggle to read in general these days but nonfiction books were always tough for me even in my heavy reading days. My thoughts on books like these tend to be a combination of book thoughts and thoughts on the life choices that the author shares.
From the narrative side, the author(s) does a great job using Glaser's personal story to tell us the larger story about pediatric AIDS. This could've easily just been a collection of interviews or short glimpses into various afflicted families' lives. That probably would've gotten a stronger emotional response but it wouldn't have been the response needed here. By using her story and sharing the intimate thoughts in her mind, the reader gets to see that sadness and pity isn't what these kids need. We get to feel the urgency. Sharing her daughter's death with anyone who would pick up this book back in 1991 makes this the most personal way to trigger that urgency outside of the reader having their own kid going through this.
On the personal choice side, we obviously have to take the author at her word on this but I find it hard to believe that Elizabeth was that naive to think she could be making the moves she was making to get her daughter help and later start a foundation without "the secret" getting out. Not only because she was clearly a very intelligent person but her disappointment in society as a whole is pretty obvious. How can you be that smart and (justifiably) cynical but think all these people are actually going to guard something so important for you? As a parent, I'd probably do the same things but at a certain point we need to stop using the kids as our shield and admit that we want the normalcy for our own selfish reasons. Kids are a lot smarter and more resilient than we give them credit for.
Reading this in 2025 is a bit of a treat if you follow politics. Dr. Fauci is obviously still a major name today. He clearly has always been kinda unpopular. Nancy Reagan immediately asking about Elizabeth's sex life is hilarious given what we learned about her posthumously.
From the narrative side, the author(s) does a great job using Glaser's personal story to tell us the larger story about pediatric AIDS. This could've easily just been a collection of interviews or short glimpses into various afflicted families' lives. That probably would've gotten a stronger emotional response but it wouldn't have been the response needed here. By using her story and sharing the intimate thoughts in her mind, the reader gets to see that sadness and pity isn't what these kids need. We get to feel the urgency. Sharing her daughter's death with anyone who would pick up this book back in 1991 makes this the most personal way to trigger that urgency outside of the reader having their own kid going through this.
On the personal choice side, we obviously have to take the author at her word on this but I find it hard to believe that Elizabeth was that naive to think she could be making the moves she was making to get her daughter help and later start a foundation without "the secret" getting out. Not only because she was clearly a very intelligent person but her disappointment in society as a whole is pretty obvious. How can you be that smart and (justifiably) cynical but think all these people are actually going to guard something so important for you? As a parent, I'd probably do the same things but at a certain point we need to stop using the kids as our shield and admit that we want the normalcy for our own selfish reasons. Kids are a lot smarter and more resilient than we give them credit for.
Reading this in 2025 is a bit of a treat if you follow politics. Dr. Fauci is obviously still a major name today. He clearly has always been kinda unpopular. Nancy Reagan immediately asking about Elizabeth's sex life is hilarious given what we learned about her posthumously.
October 11, 2023
A difficult book to rate. It has a particular, and appropriate, intensely emotional style which entirely suits the circumstances. However, that style is also very repetitive, draining and runs the risk of reducing the impact over time. Having read some exceptional books about the Aids Epidemic - like How To Survive A Plague, this does not measure up . But it does provide a good insight into another aspect of the epidemic - paediatric HIV - which other books don't focus on. The best sections cover Glaser's forays into Washington to gain Congressional support - which is genuinely fascinating. The sheer mind bending frustration of her situation is well communicated. So, not an essential book about the Aids crisis, but a pretty interesting one.
July 19, 2021
Karen Gregory's cries are heard by many the night she is murdered but not one of the neighbors calls police. Her body is discovered many hours later and the search for the killer begins. Neighborhood watch and firefighter and neighbor George Lewis and friend of lead investigator helps as he is able. BUT is he really helping. Not the ending I expected at all. Definitely a good read.
July 24, 2018
Got it from the NEW SELECTIONS section of the Crawford Co Public Library in 1991, read it every free minute! While nursing my son, in the tub, so captivating I couldn't put it down to go to sleep! So great that even now when I think of it, it tugs at my heartstrings😍
July 21, 2020
This is a very emotional and moving story about a family facing one obstacle after another. The fact that Elizabeth Glaser was able to find hope when almost all was lost is a testament to her character. Definitely worth reading.
February 23, 2018
Very sad history of the collateral effects of AIDS.
November 4, 2019
Incredibly good.
November 30, 2020
Brilliant book. If you love a true story that will keep you gripped from the start then you have to read this.
May 21, 2021
Une autobiographie très touchante pleine de courage et de force
July 7, 2025
A very well written book about a determined mother and activist. So interesting reading this book about the 80s when we are now in 2025 and the progress that has been made as far as AIDS goes.
February 13, 2017
This book is an amazing journey into a life no way mother should ever be faced with.
December 21, 2008
This is the heartbreaking story of Elizabeth, Ariel, and Jake Glaser (family of actor/director Paul Michael Glaser), who contracted AIDS in the early eighties when Elizabeth had a blood transfusion during childbirth. Elizabeth Glaser gives a moving account of her family’s experience – it is impossible to read about Ariel’s sickness and eventual death without crying – but she also outlines the history of the AIDS epidemic and federal government’s immense failure to manage the crisis. The government’s apathy prompted Elizabeth to become a tireless AIDS advocate and to found the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. If you love to read about everyday people who become heroes in the face of injustice, this is definitely the book for you.
February 18, 2016
Es una historia basada en hechos reales que me ha parecido muy triste, porque nos muestra la lucha continua de una familia ante la enfermedad del SIDA y al mismo tiempo el poco conocimiento médico y social sobre dicha enfermedad en la década de los 80.
La historia nos la cuenta en primera persona uno de los miembros de esta familia, Elizabeth Glaser. Elizabeth como protagonista principal me gusta mucho, porque en la novela, a pesar de lo dura que ha sido su vida, va evolucionando. Otro de los motivos por los que me gusta la protagonista es porque consigue que nos metamos plenamente en su piel y sintamos las cosas como las siente ella.
Me ha gustado mucho y la recomiendo totalmente.
La historia nos la cuenta en primera persona uno de los miembros de esta familia, Elizabeth Glaser. Elizabeth como protagonista principal me gusta mucho, porque en la novela, a pesar de lo dura que ha sido su vida, va evolucionando. Otro de los motivos por los que me gusta la protagonista es porque consigue que nos metamos plenamente en su piel y sintamos las cosas como las siente ella.
Me ha gustado mucho y la recomiendo totalmente.
August 24, 2010
Ich habe schon viele Bücher aus der Reihe Erfahrungen gelesen. Von manchen war ich beeindruckt, von anderen enttäuscht.
Bei diesem Buch aber, war recht shcnell klar, dass es zu meinen Lieblingsbüchern zählen wird. Die Geschichte von Elisabeth und ihren Kindern ist so ergreifend. Vom Schicksal gepackt, gibt sie nicht auf und tritt den Kampf an, gegen die Krankheit und gegen die Behörden. Einfach WOW!
Bei diesem Buch aber, war recht shcnell klar, dass es zu meinen Lieblingsbüchern zählen wird. Die Geschichte von Elisabeth und ihren Kindern ist so ergreifend. Vom Schicksal gepackt, gibt sie nicht auf und tritt den Kampf an, gegen die Krankheit und gegen die Behörden. Einfach WOW!
August 1, 2013
Es una historia muy conmovedora sobre el SIDA, cuando la gente aún no sabía muy bien qué tan peligroso o contagioso era.
Lo leí en secundaria y recuerdo que en aquella época yo no sabía mucho sobre el SIDA, solían mencionarlo en casa y en la escuela, pero no estaba del todo enterada, y el libro me abrió mucho los ojos sobre como estaban las cosas y sobre todos los prejuicios que existían sobre la enfermedad.
Lo leí en secundaria y recuerdo que en aquella época yo no sabía mucho sobre el SIDA, solían mencionarlo en casa y en la escuela, pero no estaba del todo enterada, y el libro me abrió mucho los ojos sobre como estaban las cosas y sobre todos los prejuicios que existían sobre la enfermedad.
September 17, 2007
I learned that life is not fair and that Elizabeth possessed such strength and grace amidst such tragedy, it was truly awe-inspiring. She was wrong about only one thing-- she was not in the absence of angels, but she and Ariel are angels.
March 4, 2022
It's hard to be critical or complementary in measuring someone's pain. This book was a great insight into the not so average American Family dealing with the issue of AIDS in the 1980's. A different perspective than I've usually read about concerning the disease and the health care system.
April 29, 2020
Una biografía que te toca el alma, Elizabeth Glaser se contagia de VIH en una transfusión de sangre al dar a luz a su primera hija pero no se entera hasta 4 años después.
Una mujer admirable, que supo hacer de una "tragedia" familiar un movimiento que 30 años después ha ayudado a miles.
Una mujer admirable, que supo hacer de una "tragedia" familiar un movimiento que 30 años después ha ayudado a miles.
November 14, 2008
One of my favourites.
Currently reading
October 11, 2009Already read it in French, currently reading it in English
January 17, 2010
Paul Michael Glaser's wife and the story of her courage in the face of AIDS
December 21, 2010
This was one of the most heartbreaking books I ever read, dealing with AIDS.
April 4, 2011
One of the most incredible books I have ever read. As a nurse it was inspiring & made me rethink how I interact with my patients & others.
July 30, 2011
If you want to learn about a true hero, not a cartoon or movie or celebrity one...read this. Elizabeth Glaser was a force to be reckoned with. She made a difference in the world.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews