Uphill and Into the Wind by Willard Helmuth

Eric is a twelve-year-old boy with hemophilia. He harbors a great deal of resentment about his condition and his overprotective parents, who will not let him participate in normal childhood activities. In addition, he is in constant battle with his older brother, who has been fortunate enough to escape the condition. But his major concern is a fear of AIDS, which he has heard about but understands poorly.

Gradually, Eric and his brother learn to get along, and his parents become less protective of him. The family takes a six-day bike trip with two of the boys’ friends. At the end of the bike tour, they spend a few days at a camp for children with disabilities. There, Eric meets a boy with AIDS. A strange friendship develops, and Eric acquires more misconceptions about AIDS. Eventually, these misconceptions are corrected as Eric and his family finally learn to communicate with one another and respect one another’s feelings.

Author Willard Helmuth, M.D., is a pediatrician and the medical director of the Union County (North Carolina) Health Department, where he is in charge of the programs for immunizations and infectious diseases. He also has a high-risk pediatric clinic there for economically deprived children. Uphill and Into the Wind is based on professional and first-hand information. Dr. Helmuth is also the author of Old Bones and Climbing up to the Tree House, both published by Royal Fireworks Press.