Local hero publishes book
After receiving a heroism award from city hall, Ryan Doyle looks to combat bullying through new memoir
Ryan Doyle, who recently won a bravery award from the city, has released a new book, Tears of Loneliness: The Angel Within. The book is designed to help those who have been victims of bullying.
By Joel Wittnebel/The Oshawa Express
Memory can be a powerful thing, and for Oshawa’s Ryan Doyle, he’s hoping to use his to combat bullying.
Doyle, who was recognized last year with a heroism award from the city for saving his mother’s life, has recently published his first book, Tears of Loneliness: The Angel Within.
The part-memoir, part-self-help book is designed to help the victims of bullying through Doyle’s own personal experiences from his middle and high school years.
“There was a lot of social isolation involved, and I felt alone in the world,” Doyle says of his high school years. “I felt like a non-violent person in a violent environment…It was an awful thing to go through.”
Living with autism and dealing with depression, Doyle says he was intimidated and shunned by his peers throughout all his years in school.
Now, Doyle is hoping to turn those awful years into something that will benefit others who may be experiencing the same emotional, verbal or other forms of abuse that come with bullying.
According to Statistics Canada, one in three adolescent students reported being bullied in 2015 and with the rise in social media, cyberbullying is quickly becoming the most common form of harassment. According to numbers from Statistics Canada, 73 per cent of victims reported being bullied online.
Doyle says he hopes his book will be able to help a wide range of people.
“I wanted to have more of an international impact on society,” he says.
And while he was first content with the accomplishment of helping a single victim of bullying, Doyle is now extending his reach.
“I’m thinking more of a broader scale and I want to reach out to the world,” he says.
The 106-page memoir, which is now in the Top 100 list within its genre on Amazon, is available in e-book, paperback and hardcover. Plans are also in the works for a fuller memoir that will share the completeness of Doyle’s struggles. Doyle also has a third book in the works, tentatively titled The Bright Future, which will help victims move on and live fuller lives.
“I certainly hope that people will address the problem of bullying and admit that it was wrong and that it still is wrong,” Doyle says. “I also want to be sure I can help as many victims of bullying that I possibly can.”
The memoir is available on Amazon and is also available for purchase through the publisher’s website at www.xlibris.com