Prison Writing in 20th-Century America

by Howard Bruce Franklin (editor), Tom Wicker (Foreword)

"Harrowing in their frank detail and desperate tone, the selections in this anthology pack an emotional wallop...Should be required reading for anyone concerned about the violence in our society and the high rate of recidivism."-Publishers Weekly. Includes work Jack London, Nelson Algren, Chester Himes,Jack Henry Abbott, Robert Lowell, Malcolm X, Mumia Abu-Jamal, and Piri Thomas.

Genres: School, Nonfiction

386 pages, Kindle Edition

First published June 1, 1998

Reviews

[David Christian · Rating 5 out of 5]

Overall excellent anthology. I don't understand why goodreads publishing info credits Tom Wicker,who wrote the foreword, and not H. Bruce Franklin, the editor. 60's generation leftist train spotters recognize Franklin as a co-founder of the Revolutionary Communist Party USA. He's matured, thankfully, into a thoughtful Marxist commentator on American popular culture and it's myths.

[Abbe Gemma]

Didn’t read start to finish for class but still think it counts and would like to revisit these authors later on…
Also like Parker said, Death to America

[Rick · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is an excellent collection of works with a wide range of voices. I wish some of the selected passages had been longer, but I think the point is to get you interested enough to dig into the authors and material more. In that regard, this has done its job exceptionally. You will not walk away from reading this feeling good. I ran the gamut of emotions from anger to sadness. Our prison and judicial system is messed up. Those caught up in the system are human beings that deserve their dignity and their voices to be heard. Please take the time and listen.

[Andrew · Rating 4 out of 5]

This edited work should be read with the book Franklin wrote on Prison Writing in America, which is an excellently written overview of themes and characters in American literary history that write about prisons or who were prisoners. Some of the writings in this book are boring, but a number of them are extremely valuable for those interested in understanding the contemporary USA.

[Parker Bracey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautiful stories. Death to America

[Rob Snyder · Rating 4 out of 5]

There are things to be taken away from all the essays, although not all of them are thoroughly interesting. Most are written men. The first two women whose essays are featured in the book were locked up for speaking out against suppression. One for advocating for birth control in the early 1900’s, the other for writing a public essay that said women’s bodies were nothing more than factory machines meant to produce soldiers for the war.

The essays by Kate Richards O’Hare are some of the best and definitely worth re-reading. In fact I think the book may be worth owning just to have those on hand.

Malcolm X’s essays are also worth rereading. His comments on being known as a number and not as a human being with a name struck a chord. And his interest in reading resonated with me. He would sleep only four hours a night so he could spend the rest of the pouring over books and he was so committed to expanding his vocabulary that he hand copied a dictionary. The conditions in prison for him were abysmal and he writes about them succinctly: “I could lie on my cot and touch both walls. The toilet was a covered pail; I don’t care how strong you are, you can’t stand having to smell a whole cell row of defecation.” P 149

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of letters, poems, essays, and stories by various prisoners and ex-prisoners from throughout the 20th century. While I didn't care for everything in the book, it represents a pretty broad cross-section of prison life, and some of the stories were right on the money. Some of the authors made me feel like I was right there in the cell, sitting in the chow hall, or looking over my shoulder out on the yard.

I particularly recommend the pieces by Jack London (maybe the best stuff in the whole book), Donald Lowrie, Nelson Algren, Malcolm X (excepts from his autobiography), George Jackson, Iceberg Slim, Assata Shakur (a very interesting woman's perspective), Dannie Martin (aka Red Hog), and of course, Mumia Abu-Jamal. While the essays by Mumia are short, they are definitely sweet and to the point. I haven't read much by him before this, but I definitely plan on changing that thanks to this book!

[Suresh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great introduction to American prison writing. I didn't know a lot about prison writing and after reading this book I found I discovered a lot of works and writers that I would like to explore further. The book is broken down by time period and the subject matter seems to shift accordingly. Thus, it provides a good opportunity to find the kind of prison writing one is interested in by researching the individual author's works. I particulary liked reading Jack Abbott and Edward Bunker. The activists imprisoned in the early 20th Century like Agnes Smedley and Kate Richards O'Hare also provided interesting glimpses of prison life, though these were somewhat more polemical in nature.

[Mary DeLoria · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wealth of essays and poetry written by American prisoners throughout the 20th century. Some are well-known, all are interesting and provide insight into what it's like to be imprisoned in this country. Recommended.

[Mike · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fascinating writing about a part of the American experience that the powers-that-be often keep hidden from many of us.