Among Murderers

Life after Prison

Nonfiction, Social & Cultural Studies, Social Science, Discrimination & Race Relations, Gender Studies, Sociology
Cover of the book Among Murderers by Sabine Heinlein, University of California Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Sabine Heinlein ISBN: 9780520954779
Publisher: University of California Press Publication: February 12, 2013
Imprint: University of California Press Language: English
Author: Sabine Heinlein
ISBN: 9780520954779
Publisher: University of California Press
Publication: February 12, 2013
Imprint: University of California Press
Language: English

What is it like for a convicted murderer who has spent decades behind bars to suddenly find himself released into a world he barely recognizes? What is it like to start over from nothing? To answer these questions Sabine Heinlein followed the everyday lives and emotional struggles of Angel Ramos and his friends Bruce and Adam—three men convicted of some of society’s most heinous crimes—as they return to the free world.

Heinlein spent more than two years at the Castle, a prominent halfway house in West Harlem, shadowing her protagonists as they painstakingly learn how to master their freedom. Having lived most of their lives behind bars, the men struggle to cross the street, choose a dish at a restaurant, and withdraw money from an ATM. Her empathetic first-person narrative gives a visceral sense of the men’s inner lives and of the institutions they encounter on their odyssey to redemption. Heinlein follows the men as they navigate the subway, visit the barber shop, venture on stage, celebrate Halloween, and loop through the maze of New York’s reentry programs. She asks what constitutes successful rehabilitation and how one faces the guilt and shame of having taken someone’s life.

With more than 700,000 people being released from prisons each year to a society largely unprepared—and unwilling—to receive them, this book provides an incomparable perspective on a pressing public policy issue. It offers a poignant view into a rarely seen social setting and into the hearts and minds of three unforgettable individuals who struggle with some of life’s harshest challenges.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

What is it like for a convicted murderer who has spent decades behind bars to suddenly find himself released into a world he barely recognizes? What is it like to start over from nothing? To answer these questions Sabine Heinlein followed the everyday lives and emotional struggles of Angel Ramos and his friends Bruce and Adam—three men convicted of some of society’s most heinous crimes—as they return to the free world.

Heinlein spent more than two years at the Castle, a prominent halfway house in West Harlem, shadowing her protagonists as they painstakingly learn how to master their freedom. Having lived most of their lives behind bars, the men struggle to cross the street, choose a dish at a restaurant, and withdraw money from an ATM. Her empathetic first-person narrative gives a visceral sense of the men’s inner lives and of the institutions they encounter on their odyssey to redemption. Heinlein follows the men as they navigate the subway, visit the barber shop, venture on stage, celebrate Halloween, and loop through the maze of New York’s reentry programs. She asks what constitutes successful rehabilitation and how one faces the guilt and shame of having taken someone’s life.

With more than 700,000 people being released from prisons each year to a society largely unprepared—and unwilling—to receive them, this book provides an incomparable perspective on a pressing public policy issue. It offers a poignant view into a rarely seen social setting and into the hearts and minds of three unforgettable individuals who struggle with some of life’s harshest challenges.

More books from University of California Press

Cover of the book The Digital Jepson Manual by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Beginning to End Hunger by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Relational Formations of Race by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Savage Dreams by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Generation Priced Out by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Breaking Through Concrete by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Creating a Common Polity by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book A Portrait of America by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book The New Connoisseurs' Guidebook to California Wine and Wineries by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Other, Please Specify by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book New Age, Neopagan, and New Religious Movements by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book More than Night by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Women's Place in the Andes by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book Reproducing Women by Sabine Heinlein
Cover of the book A Passion for Society by Sabine Heinlein
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy