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Positive: Living with HIV/AIDS
This is an uplifting story of resilience, activism, optimism, and the ability to take things day by day. Journalist David Menadue, who was one of the first people to be diagnosed with HIV in Australia and has been living with AIDS for longer than almost anyone else in the country, shares his 20-year struggle with the disease and his inspiring efforts to lead a positive life.
- GenresNonfictionMemoirLGBTGay
252 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 5 reviews
January 7, 2016
Positive is an excellent book written by David Menadue who is one of the longest living survivors of HIV in Australia. It is a really great book and an excellent portrayal of what it was like to live through the eighties and nineties with HIV and AIDS.
It is a story of resilience, courage, determination and vision, and covers so many aspects of Menadue's life but does so in a way that draws the reader in. I was interested in his life story right from the beginning especially with the way he explains what it was like to grow up in rural Australia as a gay man. At the end I was left with the impression of a remarkable life and a remarkable man. Not just because he is living with AIDS but because of his wisdom and insight, and because of his love and passion for others.
Menadue narrates his story in such a way that I can see it unfolding in my imagination. The first news about AIDS in Australia, the initial cases of people with AIDS, his diagnosis, dealing with confidentiality and disclosure, the stigma and reactions to him in the gay community, his challenges at work and his relationships with family and friends, all of this is brought to life in this story.
Menadue emphasises the destructive impact of Aids related stigma and how support from his family and work place helped him maintain his health for a long time and enabled him to combat infections and help others. One of the other ways which gave him strength was his activism and speaking out as a positive person. He has real wisdom and insight into the reality of living with HIV and AIDS and its impact on both individuals and communities.
But this is not just a memoir about Aids. In this simple volume Menadue also outlines the progress of gay rights in Australia starting from the seventies but recalling the fifties and sixties and he examines how the gay community in Australia has evolved and the way in which the gay community engaged with activism and campaigning on gay rights and on HIV/AIDS. In this way the book is brilliant because it captures the history of the gay community during a time of immense social change and social challenges.
Menadue's book reminds us of the terror and tragedy of the AIDS pandemic and the loss of so many lives but his writing also looks to the future and the changing dimensions of the AIDS pandemic. The way in which he describes the impact of the arrival of anti-retroviral drugs is fascinating, bringing home for the reader the difficulties some positive people had in adjusting to the fact that death was no longer imminent, but Menadue does not stop there.
One of the important things that he does it to remind us that the AIDS pandemic is not yet over. ARV's may have given life to some people but many countries still struggle to provide these drugs to those who need them. Preventing HIV transmission and raising awareness are still a challenge especially amongst young people and there are still people dying of AIDS because their treatment options have run out or because their bodies can no longer take what is a demanding medical regime.
And there are also hidden issues such as people living with AIDS related dementia or people who need support to re-engage with life and work. There are so many ways in which the AIDS pandemic has cast a shadow over lives and individuals need help to take steps into the light and make life more wholesome for themselves.
Menadue covers a range of diverse issues in this book and yet it isn't too long and it is easy to read. I really like the fact that he is Australian and so it provides a different dimension to the Aids crisis when compared to other memoirs and stories which are mostly focused on gay men in the US.
The end of the book leaves the reader wanting to know more and hoping that policy makers and Governments will pay attention to Menadue's testimony and keep investing in prevention, treatment, care and support, and other initiatives until we have a cure and a vaccine.
It is a story of resilience, courage, determination and vision, and covers so many aspects of Menadue's life but does so in a way that draws the reader in. I was interested in his life story right from the beginning especially with the way he explains what it was like to grow up in rural Australia as a gay man. At the end I was left with the impression of a remarkable life and a remarkable man. Not just because he is living with AIDS but because of his wisdom and insight, and because of his love and passion for others.
Menadue narrates his story in such a way that I can see it unfolding in my imagination. The first news about AIDS in Australia, the initial cases of people with AIDS, his diagnosis, dealing with confidentiality and disclosure, the stigma and reactions to him in the gay community, his challenges at work and his relationships with family and friends, all of this is brought to life in this story.
Menadue emphasises the destructive impact of Aids related stigma and how support from his family and work place helped him maintain his health for a long time and enabled him to combat infections and help others. One of the other ways which gave him strength was his activism and speaking out as a positive person. He has real wisdom and insight into the reality of living with HIV and AIDS and its impact on both individuals and communities.
But this is not just a memoir about Aids. In this simple volume Menadue also outlines the progress of gay rights in Australia starting from the seventies but recalling the fifties and sixties and he examines how the gay community in Australia has evolved and the way in which the gay community engaged with activism and campaigning on gay rights and on HIV/AIDS. In this way the book is brilliant because it captures the history of the gay community during a time of immense social change and social challenges.
Menadue's book reminds us of the terror and tragedy of the AIDS pandemic and the loss of so many lives but his writing also looks to the future and the changing dimensions of the AIDS pandemic. The way in which he describes the impact of the arrival of anti-retroviral drugs is fascinating, bringing home for the reader the difficulties some positive people had in adjusting to the fact that death was no longer imminent, but Menadue does not stop there.
One of the important things that he does it to remind us that the AIDS pandemic is not yet over. ARV's may have given life to some people but many countries still struggle to provide these drugs to those who need them. Preventing HIV transmission and raising awareness are still a challenge especially amongst young people and there are still people dying of AIDS because their treatment options have run out or because their bodies can no longer take what is a demanding medical regime.
And there are also hidden issues such as people living with AIDS related dementia or people who need support to re-engage with life and work. There are so many ways in which the AIDS pandemic has cast a shadow over lives and individuals need help to take steps into the light and make life more wholesome for themselves.
Menadue covers a range of diverse issues in this book and yet it isn't too long and it is easy to read. I really like the fact that he is Australian and so it provides a different dimension to the Aids crisis when compared to other memoirs and stories which are mostly focused on gay men in the US.
The end of the book leaves the reader wanting to know more and hoping that policy makers and Governments will pay attention to Menadue's testimony and keep investing in prevention, treatment, care and support, and other initiatives until we have a cure and a vaccine.
June 19, 2013
A frank and honest account of living with HIV and AIDS. Horrifying by the effects of the killer virus and the prejudice suffered by David Menadue and other positive people; uplifting by David's hope and his determination to channel his failing energy into helping and campaigning for other sufferers.
February 20, 2011
When I met David back in the mid-1990s, he was the first-person I'd met with full-blown AIDS. In this book, he answers the questions I wanted to ask but didn't because I was afraid they were too rude. He writes like he lives — without pretense.
August 15, 2012
From what I have read this is an intersting and proactive person who takes life by the horns regardless...Living with Aids for 7 years and HIV positive for 17 I can relate...
Displaying 1 - 4 of 5 reviews