Rating: 
Summary: Uplifting & Life-Changing
Review: Born in 1963, Bobby Griffith was raised as a devout Christian child, much like I have been for most of my life. Unsurprisingly, his mother Mary was nothing short of a Bible thumper. For the first sixteen years of his life, Bobby was told how to be the perfect Christian, something that he very much wanted to be. However, something deep inside of him had come into conflict with his aspirations of holiness. He acknowledged that he was gay. However, living in a society that encourages young men and women to be heterosexual, Bobby denied his emotions up until the time that he "came out" to his journal. Searching for some moral support and guidance from loved ones, Bobby came out to his family. He had thought that his mother would understand, but as it turns out, all that Mary Griffith understood was that being gay meant going to hell. From that point forward, it was all downhill. Desperate to save her son from eternal damnation, Mary began a silent campaign to convert her son. She began echoing the same prayers that Bobby had been praying for years, those prayers asking for God to make her son straight. While Bobby had prayed the same exact prayers up until his personal acceptance, Mary was convinced that Bobby had not tried hard enough. Where there is a will, there is a way, a way for God to make her child straight. For four years, she continued to do everything in her power to "save" Bobby. For every prayer answered with a "no," a TV evangelist would tell a story of how a faithful Christian was converted to the right kind of love, the only kind that was pleasing in God's eyes. Eventually, her persistence would be too much for Bobby to bear. After four years of self-loathing and alternating periods of loving God and hating him, Bobby committed suicide at the age of 20. It was a very self-conscious decision, one that involved no drugs or alcohol. On the night of August 26, 1983, Bobby Griffith backflipped off of a highway overpass into the path of an 18-wheeler. Psychiatrists later said that his particularly violent death was indicative of just how much he had grown to hate himself. In the years after Bobby's death, Mary Griffith began the search for answers. She asked herself the classic question: what went wrong? The answer had originally seemed so simple. God had promised to cure anyone who needed help, but why not her son? Slowly, she began to realize that it was she who was wrong. She began to unite with the parents of other gay children, confirming that Bobby wasn't the only one "abandoned" by God. Three years after the death of her son, she had completed her metamorphosis from religious zealot to one of the country's leading gay rights activists. Gone from her home were the religious ornamentals and texts that she used to find solace in. Today, she only finds comfort in telling Bobby's story to others, knowing that Bobby was all right just as God created him. Her message to parents everywhere is simple: don't let this happen to one more child. As a gay teenager myself, I know how poignant and true "Prayers for Bobby" is. This story has given me the courage to come out of my "shell" and speak openly about how much gay acceptance means to our society. This book should be read by homophobics everywhere to show them that every time they open their mouths, they are literally killing a child like Bobby. Remember, homosexuality should not kill anyone; it is Biblical literalism that killed Bobby Griffith and has made life miserable for millions of teenagers in our country. I stress the belief to other Christians that the men who wrote the Bible were just that -- men. Man is fickle and fallible. Therefore, I cannot convince myself to believe that they were representing God's opinion of sexuality. Finally, there is one particular passage from "Prayers for Bobby" that I'd like to paraphrase because it says so much about how much stories like this need to be heard by the American public: "Every Sunday, thousands if not millions of people are sitting in pews everywhere listening to sermons of homophobia being preached in their churches. Among the parishioners are gay teenagers and young adults who cry out for help, but cannot be heard above the messages of condemnation. Before you echo "Amen" at the end of such a sermon, think . . . and remember. Children are listening."
Rating:
Summary: A book EVERYBODY should read!
Review: I bought this book because, being a gay teenager and having thought about suicide (and tried to do it, actually), I wanted to read about another boy who had gone through what I was going through. I found it remarkable when I read the reaction of Mary Griffith. When I started reading it I thought to myself: "Oh my God, that's me! This is my story." I couldn't put it down at all and I had never in my life cried while reading a book. This was my first time. I really think that everybody should read this book. It's actually more than a story; it's life. I really wish this book would be adopted by high schools for reading. It was incredible.
Rating:
Summary: Please, read this book!
Review: I can't say enough about this book. I'm a very spiritual person, and I believe everything happens for a reason. There must be a reason why I picked this book up... It's traggic, yet uplifting at the same time. I urge ANYONE gay, straight, parent, child to read this book. There are no words in me to express what I feel about this book, the author, the Griffith family and of course, Bobby. It breaks my heart when I see the photos of Bobby. He has such beauty and peace in his eyes, I just don't understand. Anyway, please read this book! And enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: Eye-opening account of how society has shamed gay youths
Review: I picked this book up by chance and was immediately drawn in to Bobby's story and was able to identify with his torment. I was also inspired at the changes Bobby's mother endured as she grieved the loss of her son. This book is a must-read for anyone who is gay or knows someone who is gay, especially for someone who is struggling with religious views of homosexuality. It is a very sad time when even our churches present a view of homosexuality that offers a gay youth a choice of either facing the condemnation of others or committing suicide.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible story
Review: It would take someone without a heart to not feel the anguish of this book and this family. They don't spare themselves or make excuses, they just tell what happened and how it changed their lives forever. I couldn't stop reading.
Rating:
Summary: Anyone who knows a person who is gay MUST read this book.
Review: My best friend is male, 17, and he is gay. Currently he is struggling with the issues of whether or not he is going to "go to heaven" because of it. His parents have not accepted it. I am going to buy him this book for Christmas and show him that God does not care who you love, He cares about what kind of heart you have. Matt has the greatest heart in the world. This book can teach everyone who ever had to deal with Religon/gayness, not to judge because you don't know what you may be doing to someone you love. No matter what religion, race, or sexuality you are, God gave you a gift, and He would not have given it too you if He did not think you could handle it.
Rating: 
Summary: A sad but powerful story that everyone should read
Review: One of the best books I have ever read. Sad but extremely powerful. It is a must read for anyone, especially mothers who are having a difficult time coming to grips with the sexual orientation of their children. The book is well written and detailed. You feel a connection with Bobby and his mother through out the book. At times, the book can be a tear jerker. But then again, tear jerkers are the books that hit home the hardest and make their mark.
Rating:
Summary: A Remarkable Story
Review: Out of the ashes of her gay son's tragic suicide, a mother finds her way to enlightenment. This is a powerful story. A deeply religious mother, with a limited education, is eventually able to reach a place of complete acceptance of her son as gay. We share the arduous three years she spent researching the bible, studying, learning, reading and asking questions. This very special lady ultimately emerges with a "reborn" faith in humanity.This book is a "must read" for any parent, family member of a gay child.
Rating: 
Summary: A mother's pain is on each page.....
Review: Prayers for bobby could be any of our chidren, but what really grabbed me was the realization that our society is so lost in understanding homosexuality. It is greater than simply praying to God to change as Bobby, like any of us in brokeness, need to look at what our pain is actually about, not just the manifestation of how it is acted out. The picture we paint of our lives must be larger than a simple concept, which is why this book is so poignant for all of us. With only the premise that we are what we are at any given time and change cannot happen, then we are lost in the web of fear, confusion, lies, distortions. etc. For too many people have come out of homosexuality for this book to be the bottom line about the pain of homosexuality. I would ask any young person (or older; age doesn't matter, nor does gender!), "there are answers out there. Have you talked with Exodus International? Have you talked with anyone who has come out of it because they are out there..." -- For sure i would not lock them in the closet of despair by not telling them there are other ways to get help and leave homosexuality... and deal with all the emotions about it. I am sad for the mother in this book, as I am mother, also. I am sad for Bobby because there was help in Portland, OR in 1996 (and earlier) but until we start asking the right questions and looking for answers, kids like Bobby will make poor choices. I don't want this to happen to anyone else. So, why not teach our chiddren that there are many avenues for help, not just diving into the "gay" lifestyle. For the [gay people] I know, it isn't so gay. It is lonely and sad and empty. Why would anyone who is homosexual refuse to respect a person who did not want to stay homosexual and go for assistance in change? No one heard Bobby because no one knew the questions to ask. Our churches need to be as aware of the roots of homosexuality as our schools. No one is doomed to live a life they did not want. God is very affirming of that.
Rating:
Summary: A mother's pain is on each page.....
Review: Prayers for bobby could be any of our chidren, but what really grabbed me was the realization that our society is so lost in understanding homosexuality. It is greater than simply praying to God to change as Bobby, like any of us in brokeness, need to look at what our pain is actually about, not just the manifestation of how it is acted out. The picture we paint of our lives must be larger than a simple concept, which is why this book is so poignant for all of us. With only the premise that we are what we are at any given time and change cannot happen, then we are lost in the web of fear, confusion, lies, distortions. etc. For too many people have come out of homosexuality for this book to be the bottom line about the pain of homosexuality. I would ask any young person (or older; age doesn't matter, nor does gender!), "there are answers out there. Have you talked with Exodus International? Have you talked with anyone who has come out of it because they are out there..." -- For sure i would not lock them in the closet of despair by not telling them there are other ways to get help and leave homosexuality... and deal with all the emotions about it. I am sad for the mother in this book, as I am mother, also. I am sad for Bobby because there was help in Portland, OR in 1996 (and earlier) but until we start asking the right questions and looking for answers, kids like Bobby will make poor choices. I don't want this to happen to anyone else. So, why not teach our chiddren that there are many avenues for help, not just diving into the "gay" lifestyle. For the [gay people] I know, it isn't so gay. It is lonely and sad and empty. Why would anyone who is homosexual refuse to respect a person who did not want to stay homosexual and go for assistance in change? No one heard Bobby because no one knew the questions to ask. Our churches need to be as aware of the roots of homosexuality as our schools. No one is doomed to live a life they did not want. God is very affirming of that.
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