Prayers for Bobby

A Mother's Coming to Terms with the Suicide of Her Gay Son

By: Leroy Aarons

Narrated by: Wentworth Miller

Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins

Publisher's summary

Bobby Griffith was an all-American boy…and he was gay. Faced with an irresolvable conflict—for both his family and his religion taught him that being gay was “wrong”—Bobby chose to take his own life.

Prayers for Bobby, nominated for a 1996 Lambda Literary Award, is the story of the emotional journey that led Bobby to this tragic conclusion. But it is also the story of Bobby’s mother, a fearful churchgoer who first prayed that her son would be “healed,” then anguished over his suicide, and ultimately transformed herself into a national crusader for gay and lesbian youth.

As told through Bobby’s poignant journal entries and his mother’s reminiscences, Prayers for Bobby is at once a moving personal story, a true profile in courage, and a call to arms to parents everywhere.

©1995 by Leroy Aarons (P)2022 by Blackstone Publishing

Sad but evolutionary

Plenty of time has passed since Bobby Griffith ended his physical life. Much has changed since that time and yet much has stayed the same. The preoccupation that many religious denominations have with sex, and particularly the sex that gay men have, is fascinating. It’s difficult, as a reasoning human, to reconcile the hate disguised as love that many religions profess. That Bobby’s mother, Mary, had her beliefs about homosexuality converted from religious fundamentalism to one of acceptance is the uplifting part of the story. May we each learn the lessons from this book. Many will disagree but may those with eyes see and those with ears hear. Rest In Peace Bobby and Mary and so many LGBTQ members whose lives mattered and still do. Peace to all.

Excellent movie and book !

Mary is my hero, she made way for my only son to be who he is and exactly who our creator made him to be.

Excellent for 1st 9 hrs

Storyline and presentation was excellent until the afterword where personal uneducated beliefs took over. People presenting narratives in the afterword need to do their due diligence before speaking.