Known as a brave, engaging, envelope-pushing, all-American California girl, Lila Rose has for years attacked the belly of the abortion beast, never wavering and often emerging stronger for the next battle. Yet her very public image is only part of the story that is revealed in her deeply reflective and page-turner of a book, appropriately titled, Fighting for Life: Becoming a Force for Change in a Wounded World.

Before offering a belated recommendation, five years after the book’s publication, I must issue a warning to prolifers like me who have admired the author’s heroic exploits:

Lila Rose is human. She says so herself.

The unflappable public figure who founded Live Action as a teen, produced undercover videos of Planned Parenthood, and engages in heated debates and TV interviews to espouse in near-perfect pitch the winning arguments for life has deep feelings and fears that rarely show in public.

In this book, she shows us a beautiful, wonderful, brilliant, anxiety-susceptible, wounded woman who opens a window to her heart and troubled family history, laying herself out as vulnerable as few leaders of a worldwide, multimillion dollar nonprofit enterprise would do, for fear of losing reputation and donors. She has struggled with an eating disorder, engaged in cutting her skin and suffered from a nearly unpronounceable emotional condition of trichotillomania (yes, she uses the word), in which she pulled out hairs from her head to calm her nerves. As far as relationships, the now married mother of three, recalls crying herself to an uneasy sleep years ago over the antics of an ex-boyfriend who was showing up at her public events and leaving personal notes. She gives many other examples of unwanted attention.

In her honesty, however, Lila is even stronger than her public image suggests, and she rises above the battle lines drawn by the narrow viewpoints of her opponents, who would gladly use any sign of weakness against her. But Lila has them beat in the manner of Saint Paul, who wrote, “I will rather boast about my weaknesses, that the power of Christ may dwell in me” (2 Cor 12:9).

Yet the book is not a “Dear Diary” confessional. She does not open herself up for sympathy or shock value. As the subtitle of the book suggests, Lila has written much more than an autobiography. Rather, this is a guidebook and manual for young people in particular who want to become a “Force for Change in a Wounded World.”

The book’s introduction, titled “Dare to Fight for a Better World,” sets the instructional tone from the start and the first chapter, “Let Your Heart Break,” defines her deeply personal way of encouragement and persuasion. Lila’s personal fears, weaknesses, successes, and failures are told to show how to overcome obstacles with deep beliefs and persistence. Each chapter ends with pointed questions and suggested actions for readers to assess their own values and capacity to effect change.

Expect Resistance—Even from Allies

Of special interest to me were her thoughts on the criticism her undercover video tactics received from high-profile prolifers in the chapter, “Expect Resistance from Within.” Defense of those tactics appeared in a Human Life Review article (“Live Action Lies?” Summer 2011), noting the long-established convention of pen names and other forms of deception in journalism that are meant to protect identities and expose wrongdoing.

Not naming names, Lila writes, “They felt that going undercover was immoral because it involved deception.” In her defense, she cites the 19^th century figure Nellie Bly, who feigned insanity to enter an asylum and document abuses that led to reforms; Martin Luther King, Jr., who broke unjust laws in his peaceful protests; and Joe “Donnie Brasco” Pistone, a Catholic, Mass-going FBI agent who worked undercover to expose organized crime. She also could have mentioned Fr. Walter Ciszek, the heroic Jesuit priest who entered Russia with a false name and work papers to secretly administer the sacraments to laborers. Numerous Jesuit campus buildings are named for him and his cause for canonization was opened in 2012.

Lila states that going undercover was a tactic of last resort, writing, “Civil authorities had abdicated their responsibility to investigate and close abortion facilities. . . . This is why Live Action’s investigative work began—because of the failure of law enforcement to protect children in the womb and their mothers from the abortion industry.”

Using the experience as a lesson, Rose exhorts the reader to use criticism they receive as an opportunity to grow and continue in their work better than ever—advice in keeping with the spirit of her favorite saint, Joan of Arc, whose words she cites: “Act, and God will act.”

That is what makes returning to the book on its fifth anniversary so fitting: what we see in these pages is not merely a fighter, but a person still growing—still blooming—under pressure, and still leading others forward in the cause for life.