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Doing Time Outside
Compelling, gritty and funny, Doing Time Outside, travels the back roads of family life to better understand what it means to be tied by blood and love to the world of mental illness, addiction and incarceration.
- GenresFiction
315 pages, Kindle Edition
First published August 1, 2013
222 people want to read
About the author
Ginnah Howard
6 books10 followersGinnah Howard's stories have appeared in Water~Stone Review, Permafrost, Portland Review, Descant 145, Eleven Eleven Journal, Stone Canoe, and elsewhere. Several have been nominated for a Pushcart Prize. Her trilogy about two troubled Upstate New York families, which spans the years from 1946 to 2003, is now complete. In Book 1, Rope & Bone: A Novel in Stories (Illume Publications, July 2014) all the Merricks and Morlettis have a chance to give their "take" on their formative years. Book 2, Night Navigation (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2009) focuses on the Merrick familiy. This novel was a New York Times Book Review Editors' Choice. Book 3, Doing Time Outside (Standing Stone Books 2013), gives the Morlettis' side of the story. All of the novels stand alone. The National Alliance on Mental Illness of New York State gave Howard their Media Award for work on behalf of those with mental illness and their families. For more information visit: www.GinnahHoward.com
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 26, 2013
“A Family Struggling to Extricate Itself from Dystopia”
A Review of Doing Time Outside, by Ginnah Howard
By Valerie Haynes
Doing Time Outside, like its predecessor, Night Navigation, is marketed as a book about families struggling with drug addiction. And certainly it is that.
But to the keen observer it is much more. Doing Time Outside is a glimpse into one segment of modern society’s teetering on the precipice of entering Huxley’s dystopian Brave New World, or perhaps an Orwellian society.
Here is the situation the book presents:
A young man is lured into drug addiction by a society that, with its visible hand, makes usage of those drugs illegal, and establishes an elaborate system to punish those illegal users with prison terms and “reform” them with necessary psychiatric treatment, including the prescription of pharmaceutical drugs which are oh-so-helpful to “balance” deviants like drug addicts.
But to anyone who is awake, here is the other obvious, which the author leaves unstated: That society’s back hand is busy manufacturing and pushing those illegal drugs and making fortunes for their secret manufacturers and high-level pushers (neither of whom ever get prosecuted), not to mention the pharmaceutical and prison industries, etc., who benefit at the other end of the process. And the psychiatric diagnoses and treatment of these addicts is itself suspect, if not completely bogus, including its forced prescription of pharmaceutical drugs to render its patients mentally inert.
While it does not seem to be Howard’s intention to highlight this situation, nevertheless, there it is between the lines. She cleverly presents this modern true-life family scenario as if it is only the family’s problem, and the drug addict’s fault. That they somehow failed. This is the microcosm point of view. But once in a while she gives you a glimpse of that much larger, hidden, sinister vortex sucking in not just Rudy (the miscreant), but a whole society.
Take for example this excerpt from Rudy’s visit to the Chemical Dependency Clinic, where Rudy must once again try valiantly to fling himself out of the revolving “door-made-of-fog” of drugs and prison:
He’s expecting Ben Jacobs, but what he gets is this frozen fish: Ida Butler, P.A.
“I usually do the evaluations for the medications,” she says as she looks through his folder. His thick folder. “I see you were prescribed lithium in the past. Did that seem to keep the manic episodes in check?”
“I’d prefer not to be place on medication. I’m sleeping. I’m keeping my life simple to cut down on stress. I’m not using drugs or alcohol. I’m going to be doing a lot of work up on a scaffold, so I need to be completely alert.” He’s amazed how this little speech turns on without any previous rehearsal. Not how he would have played it with Jacobs.
“The contact with your probation officer indicated that you were to enter into mental health treatment. Given the many instances of psychosis described on these evaluations, medications for your bipolar disorder is clearly indicated.”
Straight out of the freezer. Okay, so he gets the meds, but he flushes them down the toilet.
“It looks like the probation department is working on getting you set up for Medicaid. Until that’s in place, I’m going to prescribe lithium. See how that goes. Of course that means you’ll have to get your blood checked once a month.”
Knowing that Howard’s book is based on real life, scenes like this will make your skin crawl—and get you to reread Huxley and Orwell. Are we really that close to their dystopian worlds?
Well, here’s a shot of reality to answer that question:
From the Justice Policy Institute:
"The United States leads the world in the number of people incarcerated in federal and state correctional facilities. There are currently more than 2 million people in American prisons or jails. Approximately one-quarter of those people held in U.S. prisons or jails have been convicted of a drug offense. The United States incarcerates more people for drug offenses than any other country. With an estimated 6.8 million Americans struggling with drug abuse or dependence, the growth of the prison population continues to be driven largely by incarceration for drug offenses."
What the keen observer will also notice is that, even if just the far less addictive and far less harmful natural drug, marijuana, were legal, the above dystopian situation would not exist. There would be far fewer people in jail for illegal drugs (and crimes associated with them) because the market for the illegal drugs would bottom out. The prison population would plummet.
And that’s the whole point.
Some very high-level people are making billions of dollars on the illegal heroin and cocaine trade, and doing God-knows-what with that money.
Howard’s truncated verbal style often uses sentences missing their subject beginnings—which fits a society in trouble and definitely missing something.
And to mimic that style, I will say of Doing Time Outside: “Definitely a must read.”
A Review of Doing Time Outside, by Ginnah Howard
By Valerie Haynes
Doing Time Outside, like its predecessor, Night Navigation, is marketed as a book about families struggling with drug addiction. And certainly it is that.
But to the keen observer it is much more. Doing Time Outside is a glimpse into one segment of modern society’s teetering on the precipice of entering Huxley’s dystopian Brave New World, or perhaps an Orwellian society.
Here is the situation the book presents:
A young man is lured into drug addiction by a society that, with its visible hand, makes usage of those drugs illegal, and establishes an elaborate system to punish those illegal users with prison terms and “reform” them with necessary psychiatric treatment, including the prescription of pharmaceutical drugs which are oh-so-helpful to “balance” deviants like drug addicts.
But to anyone who is awake, here is the other obvious, which the author leaves unstated: That society’s back hand is busy manufacturing and pushing those illegal drugs and making fortunes for their secret manufacturers and high-level pushers (neither of whom ever get prosecuted), not to mention the pharmaceutical and prison industries, etc., who benefit at the other end of the process. And the psychiatric diagnoses and treatment of these addicts is itself suspect, if not completely bogus, including its forced prescription of pharmaceutical drugs to render its patients mentally inert.
While it does not seem to be Howard’s intention to highlight this situation, nevertheless, there it is between the lines. She cleverly presents this modern true-life family scenario as if it is only the family’s problem, and the drug addict’s fault. That they somehow failed. This is the microcosm point of view. But once in a while she gives you a glimpse of that much larger, hidden, sinister vortex sucking in not just Rudy (the miscreant), but a whole society.
Take for example this excerpt from Rudy’s visit to the Chemical Dependency Clinic, where Rudy must once again try valiantly to fling himself out of the revolving “door-made-of-fog” of drugs and prison:
He’s expecting Ben Jacobs, but what he gets is this frozen fish: Ida Butler, P.A.
“I usually do the evaluations for the medications,” she says as she looks through his folder. His thick folder. “I see you were prescribed lithium in the past. Did that seem to keep the manic episodes in check?”
“I’d prefer not to be place on medication. I’m sleeping. I’m keeping my life simple to cut down on stress. I’m not using drugs or alcohol. I’m going to be doing a lot of work up on a scaffold, so I need to be completely alert.” He’s amazed how this little speech turns on without any previous rehearsal. Not how he would have played it with Jacobs.
“The contact with your probation officer indicated that you were to enter into mental health treatment. Given the many instances of psychosis described on these evaluations, medications for your bipolar disorder is clearly indicated.”
Straight out of the freezer. Okay, so he gets the meds, but he flushes them down the toilet.
“It looks like the probation department is working on getting you set up for Medicaid. Until that’s in place, I’m going to prescribe lithium. See how that goes. Of course that means you’ll have to get your blood checked once a month.”
Knowing that Howard’s book is based on real life, scenes like this will make your skin crawl—and get you to reread Huxley and Orwell. Are we really that close to their dystopian worlds?
Well, here’s a shot of reality to answer that question:
From the Justice Policy Institute:
"The United States leads the world in the number of people incarcerated in federal and state correctional facilities. There are currently more than 2 million people in American prisons or jails. Approximately one-quarter of those people held in U.S. prisons or jails have been convicted of a drug offense. The United States incarcerates more people for drug offenses than any other country. With an estimated 6.8 million Americans struggling with drug abuse or dependence, the growth of the prison population continues to be driven largely by incarceration for drug offenses."
What the keen observer will also notice is that, even if just the far less addictive and far less harmful natural drug, marijuana, were legal, the above dystopian situation would not exist. There would be far fewer people in jail for illegal drugs (and crimes associated with them) because the market for the illegal drugs would bottom out. The prison population would plummet.
And that’s the whole point.
Some very high-level people are making billions of dollars on the illegal heroin and cocaine trade, and doing God-knows-what with that money.
Howard’s truncated verbal style often uses sentences missing their subject beginnings—which fits a society in trouble and definitely missing something.
And to mimic that style, I will say of Doing Time Outside: “Definitely a must read.”
January 25, 2015
This was lovely, everything that a family drama should be. And when I say family drama, I have trouble not picturing something something like "7th Heaven" where everyone laughs and loves together and it's terribly sappy and makes me want to gag. This was different; it was a beautifully executed drama about a family. Plenty of dramatic things happened, but they didn't feel artificial or unnecessary.
Doing Time Outside is a look into the lives of 3 generations of women in the Morletti family as they come together to deal with a problem named Rudy Morletti. Drugs, mental illness, and poor choices have landed Rudy in jail again. The Morletti women, Tess, Carla, & Angela, have to decide how much they are willing to give and the big question, do they think Rudy can make it?
The characters are big reason why I liked this so much. Each character feels whole, from the four main characters to the minor characters like Rudy's lawyer and the patrons at the Edgewater. The author also handles subjects like Crohn's Disease, religion, and Bipolar Disorder, easily weaving them into her characters lives in a way that enriches the story. I think this was the first book I've read to feature a character with Crohn's, and even though Gary was a side character, I thought it was handled remarkably well.
Overall, this was a really nice read and a great change of pace.
I received this book for free from Goodreads First Reads. Thanks Goodreads!
Doing Time Outside is a look into the lives of 3 generations of women in the Morletti family as they come together to deal with a problem named Rudy Morletti. Drugs, mental illness, and poor choices have landed Rudy in jail again. The Morletti women, Tess, Carla, & Angela, have to decide how much they are willing to give and the big question, do they think Rudy can make it?
The characters are big reason why I liked this so much. Each character feels whole, from the four main characters to the minor characters like Rudy's lawyer and the patrons at the Edgewater. The author also handles subjects like Crohn's Disease, religion, and Bipolar Disorder, easily weaving them into her characters lives in a way that enriches the story. I think this was the first book I've read to feature a character with Crohn's, and even though Gary was a side character, I thought it was handled remarkably well.
Overall, this was a really nice read and a great change of pace.
I received this book for free from Goodreads First Reads. Thanks Goodreads!
May 31, 2014
I gave it five stars because Howard presented the story in such a way that you saw the dynamics of family and communities relationships in dealing with each other and themselves. Rudy and each family member is included with their dealing with each other, their personal coping with problems and each other and their community.
Ginnah Howard also kept the intertwining of each member viewpoint focused on the present situation with Rudy. That became the focal point in which you got to know them individually and as a unit.
Ginnah Howard also kept the intertwining of each member viewpoint focused on the present situation with Rudy. That became the focal point in which you got to know them individually and as a unit.
September 1, 2013
Like Stewart O'Nan's book, The Good Wife, Howard describes the hardscrabble life of a family in upstate New York-life is tough enough and then Rudy goes to jail. The three women left behind struggle to figure out how to live with this new disaster. Stark, funny and insightful, this is a great read that takes the reader on a unique journey. Great extras; the lawyer, the priest, the boyfriend and Queenie the dog.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews