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canisand's review against another edition
3.0
Kind of slow at the beginning, didn't agree with some of the ideas mentioned and obviously I would have selected different books, but that is more personal preference. I really liked it :)
juhlig's review against another edition
I found the authors books selections to be tone deaf and expectations of the book club members to be narrow minded and presumptive. What I read felt very pander-ey. She had clear expectations for how they’d react to the books and was disappointed when they surprised her, failing to recognize their inherent individuality as people, despite sharing similar circumstances.
shirleytupperfreeman's review against another edition
I liked this though I wouldn't call it transformative. The author started a book club for 9 men in a maximum security prison. I had not read most of the books she chose for the group but it was interesting to read about her experiences with both inmates and guards and about the discussions the books inspired. As of the book's writing, Brottman concludes that the book club has made little to no difference in the lives of the participants. I would submit that it is too early to know such a thing. I hope she continues to read with the men -- and maybe chooses some more modern and less dense books.
mayray58's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book because Mikita Brottman wrote this book about the prison where I work and she teaches at my alma mater, Maryland Institute College of Art. At first, I was annoyed with her disappointment that the inmates did not approach or perceive in same way that she did as a lit prof. Over time, she has revelations that bring her and the reader up to speed on the point of view of the inmates. (I mostly loved when she realizes that the protagonist of Lolita, Humbert Humbert, is a pedophile. Yes. He is.) I recommend this book to anyone who loves literature and who wonders what prison life is like.
didorn's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.5
pattydsf's review against another edition
3.0
I will add a quote when the book is published.
I picked this memoir up because it is about a book club. I think discussion groups can be transforming. I am always interested in how books make changes in the people who read them. I assumed that Brottman would be showing her readers the huge impact book clubs can make in a prison.
My supposition was naïve. I should have known better. I have met men in jail and they did not seem positively changed by the books they read. Why did I expect better from men who were in maximum security? There are too many problems with our prison system for one small thing to make good changes.
This does not mean that Brottman’s book was dull or deadly. I am very pleased that I had the opportunity to read about her discussion group. Even though my theory was wrong, her story was remarkable. What she and the inmates had to go through to meet regularly worth learning. They all had more endurance than I would have. Brottman had to go through a gauntlet of inspections; the inmates’ lives were a struggle to stay sane.
Brottman describes the books she chooses for her group, why she picked them and how the prisoners reacted to the books. Sometimes Brottman had mistaken ideas about the possibilities of the group, just like I did. She is honest about both her and the inmates’ behaviors and responses.
Thank you to Harper and Edelweiss for giving me access to this book before publication.
Other books about the importance of reading:
Among Others
Brown Girl Dreaming
The Lost Art of Reading
Rereadings.
I picked this memoir up because it is about a book club. I think discussion groups can be transforming. I am always interested in how books make changes in the people who read them. I assumed that Brottman would be showing her readers the huge impact book clubs can make in a prison.
My supposition was naïve. I should have known better. I have met men in jail and they did not seem positively changed by the books they read. Why did I expect better from men who were in maximum security? There are too many problems with our prison system for one small thing to make good changes.
This does not mean that Brottman’s book was dull or deadly. I am very pleased that I had the opportunity to read about her discussion group. Even though my theory was wrong, her story was remarkable. What she and the inmates had to go through to meet regularly worth learning. They all had more endurance than I would have. Brottman had to go through a gauntlet of inspections; the inmates’ lives were a struggle to stay sane.
Brottman describes the books she chooses for her group, why she picked them and how the prisoners reacted to the books. Sometimes Brottman had mistaken ideas about the possibilities of the group, just like I did. She is honest about both her and the inmates’ behaviors and responses.
Thank you to Harper and Edelweiss for giving me access to this book before publication.
Other books about the importance of reading:
Among Others
Brown Girl Dreaming
The Lost Art of Reading
Rereadings.
greenvillemelissa's review against another edition
4.0
A teacher begins a book club with nine prisoners in a maximum security facility. She discusses her literature choice and the prisoners and how the book club affected them. It was an interesting read.
robotswithpersonality's review against another edition
Awkward. I was hoping for honest reflections on the role reading, engaging with books, can play in incarcerated people's lives, and that was part of the text. The awkward part was the author's realization that literature didn't play as big a role in their lives as in hers, that the book club was an escape that she seemed happy to be part of until confronted with its relative position in others' lives, and ends on a self-pitying note.
There's a real push pull between humanizing the incarcerated, something society needs more of, and focusing on the author's own feelings, experiences. Maybe it's just trying for honest, in which case the unflattering personal portrait is an accomplishment of truth.
I think my personal bias factors in, because formal schooling emphasizing grinding away at a dry, incomprehensible text in faith that there is hidden brilliance is similar to the experiences that sent me into a decade long reading slump, reading behaviour that I now heartily reject. Reading her inflict that on the group intermittently between more savvy book choices is painful.
⚠️animal death, mention of SA
P.S. On the plus side, after some time on Storygraph and Google, I found a memoir for my TBR actually written by an incarcerated person, Sentence: Ten Years and A Thousand Books in Prison. I'm hopeful the shift in POV/ author will make for a more focused read on the subject matter.
There's a real push pull between humanizing the incarcerated, something society needs more of, and focusing on the author's own feelings, experiences. Maybe it's just trying for honest, in which case the unflattering personal portrait is an accomplishment of truth.
I think my personal bias factors in, because formal schooling emphasizing grinding away at a dry, incomprehensible text in faith that there is hidden brilliance is similar to the experiences that sent me into a decade long reading slump, reading behaviour that I now heartily reject. Reading her inflict that on the group intermittently between more savvy book choices is painful.
⚠️animal death, mention of SA
P.S. On the plus side, after some time on Storygraph and Google, I found a memoir for my TBR actually written by an incarcerated person, Sentence: Ten Years and A Thousand Books in Prison. I'm hopeful the shift in POV/ author will make for a more focused read on the subject matter.
tamarahala's review against another edition
5.0
The reviews of this book made me nervous, and while I see and understand some of the critiques, I still found this a really compelling and enjoyable read. I laughed, I cried, I cringed, I learned.