Saving Alex

Saving Alex: When I Was Fifteen I Told My Mormon Parents I Was Gay, and That's When My Nightmare Began is a 2016 memoir by Alex Cooper with Joanna Brooks.

Saving Alex
AuthorAlex Cooper
Joanna Brooks
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
GenreMemoir
Published2016
PublisherHarperOne
Pages256
ISBN9780062374608

Summary

Alex Cooper, a Mormon 16-year old, came out as a lesbian to her parents where she is in love with a girl named Yvette. They throw her out of the house. After Alex stayed with a sympathetic neighbor for a while, she was then taken by her parents to a conversion therapy program in Utah run by Johnny and Tiana Siale (who are good friends with Alex's grandparents whom Alex's parents stated that she was going to be staying with) where she was held for eight months against her will. Cooper was forced to wear a backpack full of stones to "feel the burden of being gay," beaten, kept from school, and verbally abused. She attempted suicide. When Cooper was allowed to enroll in high school, she learned of a gay-straight alliance club. With their help, she was connected with a Salt Lake City attorney named Paul Burke who represented her pro bono, earning her the right to refuse conversion therapy. Afterwards, Alex opted not to press charges against the Siales as it would not help her move on with her life. Though both of them lost their jobs and had their kids taken away from them. In addition, Alex reconciled with her parents.[1][2]

Reception

The book was reviewed in Publishers Weekly,[3] Kirkus Reviews,[4] School Library Journal,[5] and Huffington Post.[6]

Adaptation

On September 18, 2019, Lifetime aired an adaption of this memoir called Trapped: The Alex Cooper Story as part of its "Ripped from the Headlines" feature film. The film stars Addison Holley as Alex Cooper, Nicolette Pierce as Frankie Jackson (who is based on Yvette), Sara Booth as Tiana Simms (who is based on Tiana Siale), Ian Lake as Johnny Simms (who is based on Johnny Siale), Kate Drummond as Mrs. Cooper, Wilson Cruz as Paul Burke, Steven Cumyn as Mr. Cooper, and Elisa Mooncherry as Carol Lynn.[7]

References
  1. Badash, David (2016-03-16). "Gay Mormon Teen Forced to Carry Backpack Full of Stones to Make Her Straight". The New Civil Rights Movement. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  2. Garrett, Lynn (2016-03-04). "Teenager's Gay Conversion Therapy Ordeal Told in New Memoir". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  3. "Saving Alex: When I Was Fifteen I Told My Mormon Parents I Was Gay, and That's When My Nightmare Began". Publishers Weekly. 2016-01-11. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  4. SAVING ALEX | Kirkus Reviews.
  5. Hill, Sarah. "Saving Alex: When I Was Fifteen I Told My Mormon Parents I Was Gay, and That". School Library Journal. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  6. Wong, Curtis M. (2016-03-17). "Mormon Woman Exposes Barbaric And 'Humiliating' Treatment For Being Gay". HuffPost. Retrieved 2020-04-27.
  7. "'Trapped: The Alex Cooper Story' Lifetime Movie Premiere: Cast, Trailer, Date".
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