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Reviews
American Prison: A Reporter's Undercover Journey Into the Business of Punishment by Shane Bauer
sarendipity90's review against another edition
5.0
A worthwhile read for anyone interested in criminal justice reform.
joehardy's review against another edition
5.0
Wonderful, informative, succinct look into the macro and micro injustices associated with the for-profit prison industry. Super easy, enjoyable but emotionally difficult read.
slayj's review against another edition
3.0
If you like investigative journalism, I recommend this book. Shane Bauer is a journalist who decides to go undercover at Winn Correctional in Louisiana. With the help of a hidden camera and a hidden recorder, he spends 4 months working as a CO. The storytelling isn’t as deft as it is in Evicted or Say Nothing, but it isn’t pulpy. Bauer’s use of a hidden recording device allows him to rely heavily on the voices of the people he encounters, which really adds a lot, but it does feel like he’s relying on them at times.
In addition to sharing his experience as a guard, Bauer devotes about every other chapter to the history of the penitentiary system in the US and particularly in Louisiana.
It’s a quick and engaging read, heavy on the dialogue. I’m left wanting more, but not dissatisfied.
In addition to sharing his experience as a guard, Bauer devotes about every other chapter to the history of the penitentiary system in the US and particularly in Louisiana.
It’s a quick and engaging read, heavy on the dialogue. I’m left wanting more, but not dissatisfied.
leighgoodmark's review against another edition
5.0
Read this, read this, read this. As bad as you think private prisons are, they're 1000% worse. Read it to understand what's happening in private prisons now, read it to understand how the private prison system developed, read it to realize that the prison system generally, and the private prison system specifically, are direct extensions of slavery.
maxcooper's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
Content Warnings
Graphic: Confinement, Physical abuse, Racism, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and Forced institutionalization
Moderate: Death, Drug use, Mental illness, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Excrement, Medical trauma, Schizophrenia/Psychosis , Colonisation, and Injury/Injury detail
saralil's review against another edition
challenging
dark
informative
sad
tense
fast-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Confinement, Mental illness, Racism, Rape, Slavery, Suicide, Torture, Violence, and Police brutality
erickibler4's review against another edition
5.0
An eye-opening report on the history of for-profit prisons in the U.S., half history an half first-person investigative reporting. It's all fairly disturbing. And absorbing.
Bauer's adventure as an undercover reporter working for four months as a prison corrections officer would make a great movie.
Bauer's adventure as an undercover reporter working for four months as a prison corrections officer would make a great movie.