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The Prison Teacher: Stories from Britain's Most Notorious Women's Prison
"Headlines and news reports of prison leave us with a boiled-down narrative of goodies and baddies - violent offenders, neglectful mothers and incurable psychopaths if you read one paper, or cruel officers, the evil establishment and sexist judges if you read another. But, very rarely, just humans. When I started working in prisons, part of me expected to find this pantomime cast of characters. Instead I met wonderful, funny, brave and resilient people with complicated stories - on both sides of the bars. Come inside with me and meet them."
188 pages, Kindle Edition
First published May 30, 2019
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 111 reviews
August 21, 2020
This is a very critical review of a 3 star book, but a 5 star author.
The good: Mim Skinner lives what she says. She is a Christian, but never says so and never preaches but lives what she believes. She tries to be non-judgemental and presents the stories of the women she taught art and drama to as stories of people, not criminals. She does what she is allowed to do for aftercare driving girls to their crack houses when they have nowhere else to live and giving them her contact details whilst trying to get them accommodation. When she leaves the prison service, she has a pop-up restaurant that can help employ and get housing for the destitute.
The not-quite-so-good: the author's middle class background and her idea of not being judgemental derived from that culture is very obvious, she is judging from her culture. Many times, if not almost all, she says the women committed their offences as the result of abusive boyfriends. All are victims, she says. None are shown as just wanting something for nothing, or selling drugs because it is an easy way to make money. That they don't want the minimum wage jobs isn't even considered. I believe reading the stories, that some of those women knowingly made really bad choices, but they don't necessarily think they are bad, they think getting caught is bad! Because it is part of their culture, and not the authors.
The 1 star bad. The author narrates her own book. She has a monotonous, depressing voice and when imitating others, especially a really lonely and sad old lady prison visitor comes across as extremely patronising. A professional narrator could have brought this audiobook to life.
None of this takes away from the fact that this is actually quite a good book. It is a same-but-different view of prison life for women. And quite eye-opening in small ways. A prisoner, now called a resident, once on drugs, in the sex trade because of no alternative way of earning money, abused and having lost her child to the system says, after being in prison (again) for some months that she doesn't want to leave, she has nowhere to go to (and is one of the many who will not be given housing).
The author says, "to leave the prison was to feel life falling off the end of the conveyor belt of support cut off suddenly from the people and programs the residents had been working with." You can feel how frustrated she is when she says, "the idea that the best life we could give a person was being locked up on a wing" was heart-breaking.
But for those without support systems, they will find their criminal record a bar to good jobs, credit cards, perhaps even getting their children back. They will have to find a new crowd of friends that will welcome them despite it, as going back to the old crowd, perhaps the only people who will house them, is to fall back into drugs and crime because then to pay the rent and buy food there isn't any choice.
That is society's problem and if we don't solve it by upping the aftercare to more than leaving people in the carpark outside the prison with a few quid in their pocket and the promise of sheltered housing 'when it becomes available', then we are to blame, not abusive boyfriends, or a bad crowd, but we knew what to do to try and help and just said goodbye and good luck and forgot about them.
Mim Skinner doesn't do that. She helps.
So the book varies in parts from 1-4 star, but the author is a 5-star human being.
The good: Mim Skinner lives what she says. She is a Christian, but never says so and never preaches but lives what she believes. She tries to be non-judgemental and presents the stories of the women she taught art and drama to as stories of people, not criminals. She does what she is allowed to do for aftercare driving girls to their crack houses when they have nowhere else to live and giving them her contact details whilst trying to get them accommodation. When she leaves the prison service, she has a pop-up restaurant that can help employ and get housing for the destitute.
The not-quite-so-good: the author's middle class background and her idea of not being judgemental derived from that culture is very obvious, she is judging from her culture. Many times, if not almost all, she says the women committed their offences as the result of abusive boyfriends. All are victims, she says. None are shown as just wanting something for nothing, or selling drugs because it is an easy way to make money. That they don't want the minimum wage jobs isn't even considered. I believe reading the stories, that some of those women knowingly made really bad choices, but they don't necessarily think they are bad, they think getting caught is bad! Because it is part of their culture, and not the authors.
The 1 star bad. The author narrates her own book. She has a monotonous, depressing voice and when imitating others, especially a really lonely and sad old lady prison visitor comes across as extremely patronising. A professional narrator could have brought this audiobook to life.
None of this takes away from the fact that this is actually quite a good book. It is a same-but-different view of prison life for women. And quite eye-opening in small ways. A prisoner, now called a resident, once on drugs, in the sex trade because of no alternative way of earning money, abused and having lost her child to the system says, after being in prison (again) for some months that she doesn't want to leave, she has nowhere to go to (and is one of the many who will not be given housing).
The author says, "to leave the prison was to feel life falling off the end of the conveyor belt of support cut off suddenly from the people and programs the residents had been working with." You can feel how frustrated she is when she says, "the idea that the best life we could give a person was being locked up on a wing" was heart-breaking.
But for those without support systems, they will find their criminal record a bar to good jobs, credit cards, perhaps even getting their children back. They will have to find a new crowd of friends that will welcome them despite it, as going back to the old crowd, perhaps the only people who will house them, is to fall back into drugs and crime because then to pay the rent and buy food there isn't any choice.
That is society's problem and if we don't solve it by upping the aftercare to more than leaving people in the carpark outside the prison with a few quid in their pocket and the promise of sheltered housing 'when it becomes available', then we are to blame, not abusive boyfriends, or a bad crowd, but we knew what to do to try and help and just said goodbye and good luck and forgot about them.
Mim Skinner doesn't do that. She helps.
So the book varies in parts from 1-4 star, but the author is a 5-star human being.
April 4, 2019
I received a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.
In the U.K., 5% of all prisoners are female. That’s over 4,000 women. Of these, 46% of them have experienced some form of domestic and/or sexual violence, and around 53% suffered from sexual, emotional or physical abuse in their childhood*. So why do we know so little about them? In a climate hot on feminism, women’s rights and empowering women, why are our most vulnerable seemingly left to fend for themselves, with decreasing funding and support, in a prison system that does nothing to stop the cycle of reoffending? They’re the forgotten women of our society.
Mim Skinner has done wonders here in exposing what life is really like for these women behind bars. Far from tarring everyone with the same brush, she seeks to show these women for what they are - resilient, forgiving and often the victim of a childhood that no one would wish for. The book is scattered with various accounts from different women about their time inside and what happens after, as well as stories from Mim’s own time working with them as a prison art teacher. There’s some wonderful stories of solidarity here, from the play that almost wasn’t, and the time she smuggled some giant veg out of the prison, as well as the many imaginative uses for tampons.
Mim does an excellent job of really bringing to life these many colourful, brave and brilliant women. I admit that, probably like most of society, I held an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ approach towards them, but I honestly can not recommend this book enough in bringing the needs of these women to my attention, and making the campaign for women’s services more visible. Mim has a passionate voice, and a strong conviction that feels very honest and open within the pages of her book. I also have a sneaky suspicion, that although not openly mentioned within her book, that the prison she worked within is my local one. It just made the women more ‘real’ to me, to realise that they’re within my own community.
Highly recommend to everyone. Don’t let these women stay hidden.
*figures taken from womeninprison.org.uk
In the U.K., 5% of all prisoners are female. That’s over 4,000 women. Of these, 46% of them have experienced some form of domestic and/or sexual violence, and around 53% suffered from sexual, emotional or physical abuse in their childhood*. So why do we know so little about them? In a climate hot on feminism, women’s rights and empowering women, why are our most vulnerable seemingly left to fend for themselves, with decreasing funding and support, in a prison system that does nothing to stop the cycle of reoffending? They’re the forgotten women of our society.
Mim Skinner has done wonders here in exposing what life is really like for these women behind bars. Far from tarring everyone with the same brush, she seeks to show these women for what they are - resilient, forgiving and often the victim of a childhood that no one would wish for. The book is scattered with various accounts from different women about their time inside and what happens after, as well as stories from Mim’s own time working with them as a prison art teacher. There’s some wonderful stories of solidarity here, from the play that almost wasn’t, and the time she smuggled some giant veg out of the prison, as well as the many imaginative uses for tampons.
Mim does an excellent job of really bringing to life these many colourful, brave and brilliant women. I admit that, probably like most of society, I held an ‘out of sight, out of mind’ approach towards them, but I honestly can not recommend this book enough in bringing the needs of these women to my attention, and making the campaign for women’s services more visible. Mim has a passionate voice, and a strong conviction that feels very honest and open within the pages of her book. I also have a sneaky suspicion, that although not openly mentioned within her book, that the prison she worked within is my local one. It just made the women more ‘real’ to me, to realise that they’re within my own community.
Highly recommend to everyone. Don’t let these women stay hidden.
*figures taken from womeninprison.org.uk
June 1, 2019
We frequently see and hear the media vilifying prison inmates for their actions, but what they fail to do is dig deeper into the stories of these convicts. Prison teacher Mim Skinner has produced a magnificent book in which she tells the stories of female inmates' experiences and backgrounds with a crucial non-judgemental tone. It makes for fascinating but often sad and poignant reading, however, the humour throughout is injected into the narrative in all the right places in an effort to provide a balance between the light and shade. Skinner shows that many female inmates are there merely for finding a way to survive, eat, have shelter, warmth and have their basic human needs met.
The old outdated beliefs that someone is either good or bad are refuted here as we read through the individual cases you will see that it is simply not as black and white as some make it out to be. It is the only book to be published about a UK women's prison and it's a powerful, accessible and thoroughly eye-opening work which provides plenty of food for thought, and Ms Skinner treats these women with warmth and understanding. This is a book that shines a light on the complexities surrounding working and living in a women's prison. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about these women. Many thanks to Seven Dials for an ARC.
The old outdated beliefs that someone is either good or bad are refuted here as we read through the individual cases you will see that it is simply not as black and white as some make it out to be. It is the only book to be published about a UK women's prison and it's a powerful, accessible and thoroughly eye-opening work which provides plenty of food for thought, and Ms Skinner treats these women with warmth and understanding. This is a book that shines a light on the complexities surrounding working and living in a women's prison. I thoroughly enjoyed learning about these women. Many thanks to Seven Dials for an ARC.
June 29, 2020
This book was poorly written, and that is why I have given it a low rating. From the view of a prison officer, I was expecting descriptions of what life was like for the women in the prison, their thoughts and their struggles. Instead, I received odd lists of "prison slang", pointless letters that meant nothing to me and which also added no insight to prison life, and at no point in this book did I feel any sympathy for these women, but I honestly put that down to the horribly executed layout of this truly forgettable book.
April 27, 2020
Purchased for 99p on a Kobo daily deal!
Really enjoyed this collection by the author Mim Skinner. She goes into women's prisons to run creative workshops for the inmates there and always meets new people. Lots of interesting facts and figures thanks to some helpful facts and glossaries included throughout. Both humorous and sometimes tough to read, I do recommend this for non-fiction readers!
Really enjoyed this collection by the author Mim Skinner. She goes into women's prisons to run creative workshops for the inmates there and always meets new people. Lots of interesting facts and figures thanks to some helpful facts and glossaries included throughout. Both humorous and sometimes tough to read, I do recommend this for non-fiction readers!
March 21, 2020
A intimate look at what goes on behind the gates of a woman’s prison, authored by a prison creative arts teacher. I enjoyed reading about the women the author met and taught, but wished their stories were explored further. The format of the book was also a little old; there was glossaries dotted throughout, along with transcripts of conversations and facts and statistics. I would have preferred this all to be condensed towards the end of the book, once the woman’s stories were told.
The author raises important issues, albeit briefly, about the disproportionate amount of women in prisons in the UK who have been affected by abuse. She also goes on to say that the prison system does not work for women, but offers little analysis on why.
There are a few funny moments in this book, which make it readable, although not on par with other similar books.
Worthwhile for criminal justice or law students, the general population will perhaps find this too wishy-washy to feel passionate about.
The author raises important issues, albeit briefly, about the disproportionate amount of women in prisons in the UK who have been affected by abuse. She also goes on to say that the prison system does not work for women, but offers little analysis on why.
There are a few funny moments in this book, which make it readable, although not on par with other similar books.
Worthwhile for criminal justice or law students, the general population will perhaps find this too wishy-washy to feel passionate about.
March 10, 2022
Had the potential to be so much better.
October 3, 2021
This was FANTASTIC. I read it in one sitting - something I nearly never do with non-fiction books.
I loved learning about the women in the prison Mim worked at - I loved getting their personal stories, the good and the bad, and how real it made the experience of reading this book.
Prison reform is SO important and it makes me furious that there isn't a bigger movement to implement it.
And at the same time, this book helped to satisfy some of the curiosity I have about life on the inside of a jail. I'm a self-admitted binger of Netflix documentaries like Jailbirds, Girls Incarcerated etc. - I just find it all so interesting. And it was nice to finally get some insight into the prison system of my own country, the UK, rather than just America. And not going to lie - some parts (the community, the classes, the choirs) sound lovely while others (violence, food, threats, communal showers, being locked in) do not.
I also loved the formatting. I loved the snippets we got from former inmates (residents), the poetry, the scripts. It just made everything flow so much more easily and kept me constantly engaged. I'd love to read more from Mim Skinner.
I loved learning about the women in the prison Mim worked at - I loved getting their personal stories, the good and the bad, and how real it made the experience of reading this book.
Prison reform is SO important and it makes me furious that there isn't a bigger movement to implement it.
And at the same time, this book helped to satisfy some of the curiosity I have about life on the inside of a jail. I'm a self-admitted binger of Netflix documentaries like Jailbirds, Girls Incarcerated etc. - I just find it all so interesting. And it was nice to finally get some insight into the prison system of my own country, the UK, rather than just America. And not going to lie - some parts (the community, the classes, the choirs) sound lovely while others (violence, food, threats, communal showers, being locked in) do not.
I also loved the formatting. I loved the snippets we got from former inmates (residents), the poetry, the scripts. It just made everything flow so much more easily and kept me constantly engaged. I'd love to read more from Mim Skinner.
January 14, 2020
This was a fascinating look inside an English women's prison from the POV of someone who worked in one (in an art/writing teaching role). Mim Skinner made an effort to include the voices of women who were in prison too - a choice which should be so automatic as to not need to be praised, but here we are. It takes a look at the reality of prison and the circumstances and choices (choices made within societal structures that are highly disadvantageous to many women) that lead women to it, and how for some women it represents a place of safety compared to life on the outside. It's a tough read, but these are tales that should be told. I enjoyed Mim Skinner's writing style for the most part although some of the personal details she dropped in were superfluous and seemed designed to tell us what a great person she was, which was a tad annoying. It's also worth noting that she only worked in this arena for a short time (a couple of years IIRC) before writing this, which takes a little from its credibility - given the choice I would prefer to hear/read a more experienced perspective. However I recommend this to anyone with an interest in social issues.
December 8, 2022
I've realised that with this book Mim Skinner managed to do an amazing thing. She got me to see the female prison residents as what they are: women! Women who've probably made mistakes, who had difficult childhoods, but keep having dreams. Yes, she might be also naive, but her book helps us understand why there are so many women who keep coming back - without some needed support to (re)build their lives outside, these women feel safer and prefer to be in prison.
I'm not sure this is a memoir, as mostly it reflects Mim's observations and experiences while working at the prison, as well as some of these women's stories. These are interspersed with very short chapters including snippets of information about life in prison or first person narrative. This format worked very well for me!
Thanks to my local library for stocking such a relevant book! (though it was shelved in the "True Crime" section...)
I'm not sure this is a memoir, as mostly it reflects Mim's observations and experiences while working at the prison, as well as some of these women's stories. These are interspersed with very short chapters including snippets of information about life in prison or first person narrative. This format worked very well for me!
Thanks to my local library for stocking such a relevant book! (though it was shelved in the "True Crime" section...)
May 27, 2019
A must read for anyone who is thinking of or works in a prison. Informative and thought provoking without the overwhelming grim reality.
April 16, 2020
A special and rare lens into the realities of a women's prison in England. I felt particularly fired up after this read. Skinner's experience teethes out exactly why incarceration and a punitive criminal justice system, is simply ineffective - particularly in the case of women.
"Prison just doesn't work for women: 48 per cent of women leaving prison are back within a year."
"The charity Women in Prison found that 79 per cent of the women they work with a victims of domestic violence... These statistics paint a sad picture, where women in prison tend to be victims of more significant crimes than those they have been convicted of."
Harrowing statistics alongside personal tales, make this read an urgent wake up call. Be prepared to inquire into your own attitudes toward criminalisation and victimisation.
"Prison just doesn't work for women: 48 per cent of women leaving prison are back within a year."
"The charity Women in Prison found that 79 per cent of the women they work with a victims of domestic violence... These statistics paint a sad picture, where women in prison tend to be victims of more significant crimes than those they have been convicted of."
Harrowing statistics alongside personal tales, make this read an urgent wake up call. Be prepared to inquire into your own attitudes toward criminalisation and victimisation.
March 18, 2020
I think the reason this was only a 3 star for me was because I wanted it to go further than it did.
I wanted it to go into the sociology and psychology of prisons and the prison industrial complex, but it stayed safely in the experiences of the author working in prisons in the UK.
It was definitely well written, but there is an aspect to it that didn't sit well with me. I'm not sure it was opportunistic or exploitative, because there were collaborative parts of this, but something about it didn't work for me.
I think the author tried to do an Adam Kay, by putting 'funny' anecdotes in the book, but with the topic of trauma from incarcerated women made it a difficult pill to swallow for the wrong reasons.
If you're looking for an introduction to this topic, I think this would work for you, but I wanted something deeper.
I wanted it to go into the sociology and psychology of prisons and the prison industrial complex, but it stayed safely in the experiences of the author working in prisons in the UK.
It was definitely well written, but there is an aspect to it that didn't sit well with me. I'm not sure it was opportunistic or exploitative, because there were collaborative parts of this, but something about it didn't work for me.
I think the author tried to do an Adam Kay, by putting 'funny' anecdotes in the book, but with the topic of trauma from incarcerated women made it a difficult pill to swallow for the wrong reasons.
If you're looking for an introduction to this topic, I think this would work for you, but I wanted something deeper.
January 21, 2020
I had hoped this book would humanize convicts and prisoners, sharing their histories and examples of how a flawed system sets poor women up for continued failure. At 30% in, except for one poignant sentence in the introduction, there isn't a hint of any of this. Skinner recounts the prison routine and vocabulary without incorporating the stories of these women before they were incarcerated. I can only surmise that's because they didn't trust her with it. As a prison employee, she's part of the system to them and considered an outsider. Quite frankly, nothing in the women's attitudes made me feel any sympathy for them. The author recounts pointless anecdotes that do nothing to humanize these women.
DNF @ 30%
DNF @ 30%
December 18, 2020
3,5
Kniha je autorkinou "cestou" ženskou väznicou ako arteterapeutky, ktorá sa angažuje aj v oblasti viery, a súborom drobných stretnutí s rezidentkami. Kniha neponúka hlbšie analýzy či pohľady do života žien vo väznici, čo nie je nutne na škodu - vďaka zameraniu na autorkine skúsenosti kniha pôsobí autentickejšie, ako keby sa snažila konštruovať príbehy žien s výrazne odlišnou pozicionalitou.
Pri čítaní som mierne bojovala s vlastnými predsudkami voči autorke ako katolíčke zo strednej triedy, ktorá píše o vylúčených. Vzhľadom na moje vlastné predsudky ma prekvapilo, že Skinner nepôsobí patronizujúco, naopak - stáva sa (aspoň čiastočne) obhajkyňou žien a žalobkyňou systému.
Kniha určite stála za prečítanie ale neočakávajte, že sa veľa a do hĺbky dozviete o životoch žien vo väznici, servírované sú len drobné ochutnávky. Namiesto toho vám Mim Skinner ponúkne svoju skúsenosť so ženskou väznicou, respektíve jej časťou, a to z pohľadu nerezidentky.
A, samozrejme, treba vyzdvihnúť, že Skinner nielen píše texty, ale podľa biografie robí i kus práce pre ženy v rôznych existenčných situáciach, a tak aspoň v individuálnych prípadoch nahrádza nefunkčný systém, ktorý utláča určité skupiny žien.
Áno, mnohé ženy-rezidentky sa do väznice vracajú opakovane a rady, pretože ta majú strechu nad hlavou a väčšiu kontrolu nad životom než vonku. No prečo im po prepustení neposkytneme ubytovanie, aby neboli nútené vracať sa do násilných vzťahov? A prečo ich pokúšame drogami, keď ich bez akejkoľvek podpory vyšmaríme na ulicu?
Kniha je autorkinou "cestou" ženskou väznicou ako arteterapeutky, ktorá sa angažuje aj v oblasti viery, a súborom drobných stretnutí s rezidentkami. Kniha neponúka hlbšie analýzy či pohľady do života žien vo väznici, čo nie je nutne na škodu - vďaka zameraniu na autorkine skúsenosti kniha pôsobí autentickejšie, ako keby sa snažila konštruovať príbehy žien s výrazne odlišnou pozicionalitou.
Pri čítaní som mierne bojovala s vlastnými predsudkami voči autorke ako katolíčke zo strednej triedy, ktorá píše o vylúčených. Vzhľadom na moje vlastné predsudky ma prekvapilo, že Skinner nepôsobí patronizujúco, naopak - stáva sa (aspoň čiastočne) obhajkyňou žien a žalobkyňou systému.
Kniha určite stála za prečítanie ale neočakávajte, že sa veľa a do hĺbky dozviete o životoch žien vo väznici, servírované sú len drobné ochutnávky. Namiesto toho vám Mim Skinner ponúkne svoju skúsenosť so ženskou väznicou, respektíve jej časťou, a to z pohľadu nerezidentky.
A, samozrejme, treba vyzdvihnúť, že Skinner nielen píše texty, ale podľa biografie robí i kus práce pre ženy v rôznych existenčných situáciach, a tak aspoň v individuálnych prípadoch nahrádza nefunkčný systém, ktorý utláča určité skupiny žien.
Áno, mnohé ženy-rezidentky sa do väznice vracajú opakovane a rady, pretože ta majú strechu nad hlavou a väčšiu kontrolu nad životom než vonku. No prečo im po prepustení neposkytneme ubytovanie, aby neboli nútené vracať sa do násilných vzťahov? A prečo ich pokúšame drogami, keď ich bez akejkoľvek podpory vyšmaríme na ulicu?
November 13, 2019
This book is about the life inside a woman's prison in the UK. It goes into the terminology used, their lifestyle, rules and what is it like being on the inside as well as being on the out. It covers two differing perspectives of being a staff member and a prisoner. I really enjoyed all the tips and tricks given if you are ever in jail. I highly recommend it.
April 5, 2021
An interesting read on what is taught inside a prison. It’s a nice quick read. If you liked the Prison Doctor - you’ll probably like this. Yeah okay, it’s not the best writing in the world, and the layout/format of the book is weird (glossaries in the middle of chapters), but it is an interesting read if you are interested in the world of law and education.
January 24, 2022
I thoroughly recommend this book. It is very well written, very quick to read, and very compassionately informative about the communities inside and surrounding women’s prisons in the UK. As Mim Skinner says in her concluding remarks, we should all be a little more horrified that everyone isn’t housed, fed and relatively safe.
July 14, 2021
Author acknowledges the lack of representation of transgender and BAME individuals in women's prisons but still disappointing that this book essentially excludes them & their unique oppressions from this account.
August 29, 2019
The best book I’ve read this year. Gripping, compelling and deeply harrowing. You simply don’t want to believe it is true and then want to make sure it doesn’t remain true
November 27, 2025
vähän jäi suppeaksi minusta :-(
April 6, 2020
Fantastic. For a book with a serious message it was such an easy and enjoyable read. Definitely left me wanting to learn more
June 3, 2024
Incredibly fascinating book, packed full of information and statistics about women in prison. I feel like I have a much better understanding of the factors that lead to the imprisonment of women and the systemic issues that are failing them. The author, importantly recognises that the voices of incarcerated women of colour and trans men aren’t heard enough, and gives recommendations for further reading. A very important read!
September 13, 2020
cn: abuse (including child abuse and sexual abuse), suicide, MH
a really lovely, informal, personal book offering very valuable insights into life working inside prison. I really enjoyed the format of stories and anecdotes interspersed with shorter sections about prison acronyms, procedures, etc. extremely sobering and moving, as well as funny, it really achieved the humanisation of prison subjects (which I assume was the aim of the writer). I was moved to tears at several of the stories.
it also offered gentle yet firm suggestion that the system isn’t working and imprisonment is not the answer to crime — I would have liked this to have been gone into in a lot more detail as it felt a bit of a shame that the opportunity to strongly critique the carceral system wasn’t taken.
the author’s christianity also muddied the moral picture at points — I worry that it could read as though she is advocating against imprisonment because of her personal faith rather than because of systematic failings it represents.
I also do worry about the ethics of presenting these stories in this way / of my tears at these stories. it is made clear that this is something the author is concerned by, but again I would have liked to see this gone into in more detail / examined more — i.e. how / why / can we write about individuals in prisons without it feeling exploitative, how can we receive these stories without it feeling like ‘trauma porn’ or similar.
also there is a total lack of focus on race — again something the author acknowledges, but just feels remiss in a book about prisons.
all in all a good and very readable account of the realities inside a woman’s prison, but for me it was much too light on the political aspects of prisons / imprisonment / gender and race in these contexts.
a really lovely, informal, personal book offering very valuable insights into life working inside prison. I really enjoyed the format of stories and anecdotes interspersed with shorter sections about prison acronyms, procedures, etc. extremely sobering and moving, as well as funny, it really achieved the humanisation of prison subjects (which I assume was the aim of the writer). I was moved to tears at several of the stories.
it also offered gentle yet firm suggestion that the system isn’t working and imprisonment is not the answer to crime — I would have liked this to have been gone into in a lot more detail as it felt a bit of a shame that the opportunity to strongly critique the carceral system wasn’t taken.
the author’s christianity also muddied the moral picture at points — I worry that it could read as though she is advocating against imprisonment because of her personal faith rather than because of systematic failings it represents.
I also do worry about the ethics of presenting these stories in this way / of my tears at these stories. it is made clear that this is something the author is concerned by, but again I would have liked to see this gone into in more detail / examined more — i.e. how / why / can we write about individuals in prisons without it feeling exploitative, how can we receive these stories without it feeling like ‘trauma porn’ or similar.
also there is a total lack of focus on race — again something the author acknowledges, but just feels remiss in a book about prisons.
all in all a good and very readable account of the realities inside a woman’s prison, but for me it was much too light on the political aspects of prisons / imprisonment / gender and race in these contexts.
February 4, 2020
This was a nice little book and a decent insight into a women's prison/day-to-day life for its' residents.
I felt however, it was lacking something for me to sink my teeth into. The anecdotes about women were realistic and sad but didn't hit hard enough.
I am already in favour of prison reform, but if I wasn't I don't feel my mind would have been changed particularly. Worth a read, but lacking a radical spark.
I felt however, it was lacking something for me to sink my teeth into. The anecdotes about women were realistic and sad but didn't hit hard enough.
I am already in favour of prison reform, but if I wasn't I don't feel my mind would have been changed particularly. Worth a read, but lacking a radical spark.
August 30, 2019
An easy and good read, a bit jokes that I spent £15 on the hardback but treat urself :ppp women in prison is something that is NEVER talked about and I loved hearing stories from such a taboo place.
December 17, 2022
Tämä olisi voinut olla kiinnostavampi, mutta ei sitten vaan ollut. Tarinat jäivät vähän tyhjiksi, samoin henkilöt. Aihehan kyllä on kiinnostava. Tyyli ei purrut yhtään, en tiedä oliko ongelma alkuperäisessä vai käännöksessä mutta veikkaan molempia. Liian kevyt ollakseen vakavastiotettava mutta ei kuitenkaan hauskakaan.
July 11, 2020
For Jack Fawdon: this book was really good, how's that's for a written review x
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