The Truth About Aaron: My Journey to Understand My Brother

Jonathan Hernandez · Lars Anderson

Oct 2018 · HarperCollins

About this ebook

The unvarnished true story of the tragic life and death of Aaron Hernandez, the college All-American and New England Patriots star convicted of murder, told by one of the few people who knew him best, his brother.

To football fans, Aaron Hernandez was a superstar in the making. A standout at the University of Florida, he helped the Gators win the national title in 2008. Drafted by the New England Patriots, in his second full season with the team he and fellow Patriots’ tight end Rob Gronkowski set records for touchdowns and yardage, and with Tom Brady, led New England to Super Bowl XLVI in 2012. But Aaron’s NFL career ended as quickly as it began. On June 26, 2013, he was arrested at his North Attleboro home, charged with the murder of Odin Lloyd, and released by the Patriots. Convicted of first-degree murder, Aaron was sentenced to life in prison without parole. On May 15, 2014, while on trial for Lloyd's murder, Aaron was indicted for two more murders. Five days after being acquitted for those double murders, he committed suicide in his jail cell. Aaron Hernandez was twenty-seven years old.

In this clear-eyed, emotionally devastating biography—a family memoir combining football and true crime—Jonathan (formerly known by his nickname DJ) Hernandez speaks out fully for the first time about the brother he knew. Jonathan draws on his own recollections as well as thousands of pages of prison letters and other sources to give us a full portrait of a star athlete and troubled young man who would become a murderer, and the darkness that consumed him. Jonathan does not portray Aaron as a victim; he does not lay the blame for his crimes on his illness. He speaks openly about Aaron’s talent, his sexuality, his crimes and incarceration, and the CTE that ravaged him—scientists found that upon his death, Aaron had the brain of a sixty-seven-year old suffering from the same condition. Filled with headline-making revelations, The Truth About Aaron is a shocking and moving account of promise, tragedy, and loss—of one man’s descent into rage and violence, as told by the person who knew him more closely than anyone else.

Ratings and reviews

I absolutely love the truth about Aaron my Journey to understand my Brother i got in to Aaron Hernandez when the ID murder mystery Series came out & i Absolutely Wanted to learn so much more about Aaron Hernandez & i found out a lot of Things about Aaron & his childhood from how Much abuse Not only Aaron had go through but DJ & they're mom I've Learned so much from Reading This Book I read it in 1 day after I read it the 1st time i read it again. I Absolutely Believe Aaron Hernandez is innocent i know He didn't Kill anyone. this Book Shows what Aaron went through as a child & what affected Him the most i cant believe how much Abuse Aaron got from dennis & Aaron was deeply affected by his father's death It Changed. him the truth about Aaron shows What Really Happened in his life & how everything affected Aaron Jonathan talkes about how His family life changed after Aaron's arrest & How People thought He was Aaron & how people Were Always Asking His Family so many questions.

I always wondered why such an amazing athlete, with his entire life pretty much in the palm of his hands, would end up in jail. This book explains it ALL. Aaron struggled with abuse as a child, nightmares, then having to hide his true being. He struggled in silence. My heart goes out to his family! Be strong, just like he would like you to be. You are amazing people, you never gave up on him. God bless you and his soul.

Great insight into such a understated man. CTE consumed him and threatened his physical and mental debilitating future. SAD. Its disheartening that he shed so many tears, through the years, in silence. It is very courageous to read this inspiring tribute to a beautiful soul. RIP Aaron H.

About the author

Jonathan Hernandez was a starting quarterback at Bristol Central High School, where he was named the Connecticut’s Gatorade Player of the Year in 2003. He went on to play at the University of Connecticut, where he became a 2x team captain and earned his Master’s degree in educational psychology. He later had coaching stints at Brown University (2011), The University of Miami (2012) and The University of Iowa (2013-14). He is currently the head coach at Ledyard High School in Ledyard, Connecticut.