Prisons

A fascinating memoir of a former sociologist/criminologist in the United States and Australia. Rather than a chronological memoir, this book provides anecdotes and accounts, often serious, sometimes funny, about life in the prison system. It includes questions and answers, a photo section and an appendix titled 'Who is to blame?'. Early in his career he realised that treating prisoners with respect achieved much better outcomes than resorting to humiliation, the default prevailing method of maintaining control. The revolving door of recidivism is ample evidence of our ongoing failure to interrupt the trajectory of so many prisoners lives. The anecdotes collected in the book amply illustrate the point. They are also sometimes very funny. Jon Faine