A review by jcarrcatzel
No Friend but the Mountains: Writing from Manus Prison by Behrouz Boochani

5.0

I read this book at the height of tensions regarding medical evacuation, a bill tossed around parliament. Guided by some loose obligation to be 'in the know' about developments, I skimmed news articles and expressed sighs of dismay and grief with the rest of my Aussie student friends. But reading No Friend But the Mountains placed me right there, on Manus, behind the barbed wire and towering coconut trees. Boochani's writing replaced what has become a convoluted mess of political commentary and opinion pieces, of slacktivist re-posting and sharing, of messages lost in left-wing circles - with clarity, with the most important story of all - the human experience. Boochani's accounts of near-death experiences, claustrophobia of prison, terror of blood shed from slitting of wrists, hopeless frustration fuelled by the rigidity of the bureaucracy, manifested in endless queues and denied claims pervade throughout. The inhumanities inflicted upon, not to mention shame and humiliation prisoners are burdened with - are unfathomable. A must-read for anyone who simply reads the headlines or half-heartedly signs petitions, perhaps it will propel you to join an advocacy group or write letters to MPs. There is always more to be done.