“Besides, Who Would Believe a Prisoner?”

It took me a while to get going with this book but once I did, I pretty much read it in one sitting, and I did not see time fly. That first line might seem like a strange way to start a review for an history book, but this book is a lot more than pure history, but it is also well documented history (peep that bibliography) delivered in a way that is anything but dry.

I remember when I was in school and we were told that we should never research something that affects us personally because we might have blind spots, this book makes almost entirely the opposite point, I liked that. I feel like I have to point out that I thought there was a great deal of humanity in how the authors treat all of their subjects, even when the people they talk about are deeply unsympathetic.

I found it particularly interesting how the authors showed that there was always a capitalistic aim that superseded any actual moral imperative that might have been claimed by the people who created carceral institutions, not that I was surprised by it, I just really thought the way it was explained and documented was great.

I received an eARC of this book from The New Press through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.