This compelling book, which has been thoroughly revised and updated, draws on candid interviews with over 400 women inmates and prison officials to shed a shocking light on our penal system as it affects women.
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Book Description
Editorial Reviews
Review
"A graphic, arresting account of prison as a way of life." -- Kirkus Reviews
"A real contribution to understanding what happens to women incarcerated in our prisons today. . . . Women in Prison is an excellent primer on the subject. The topics Watterson covers include the history of women's prisons; who is in prison, for what crimes; the prison industries that support the state and are fueled by prisoners' unpaid or miserably paid wages; the profit-making companies, organizations, and communities who benefit from the boom in prison construction and the ever-expanding correctional employment; the difficulties faced by incarcerated women and their children; the frightening world of women inside prison; the plight of those women as they leave prison with $25 in their pockets and no place to call home, no job and children to support; the inadequate medical and psychological services provided for women in prison; and prison friendships, families and sexualities." Review of Books -- Women's Review of Books
"A real contribution to understanding what happens to women incarcerated in our prison system today." -- Natalie J. Sokoloff, Women's Review of Books
"An exposé of a national disgrace . . .eloquent and illuminating" -- Saturday Review
"Here is a shocker, a real eye-opener that deserves wide attention" -- Publishers Weekly
"A real contribution to understanding what happens to women incarcerated in our prisons today. . . . Women in Prison is an excellent primer on the subject. The topics Watterson covers include the history of women's prisons; who is in prison, for what crimes; the prison industries that support the state and are fueled by prisoners' unpaid or miserably paid wages; the profit-making companies, organizations, and communities who benefit from the boom in prison construction and the ever-expanding correctional employment; the difficulties faced by incarcerated women and their children; the frightening world of women inside prison; the plight of those women as they leave prison with $25 in their pockets and no place to call home, no job and children to support; the inadequate medical and psychological services provided for women in prison; and prison friendships, families and sexualities." Review of Books -- Women's Review of Books
"A real contribution to understanding what happens to women incarcerated in our prison system today." -- Natalie J. Sokoloff, Women's Review of Books
"An exposé of a national disgrace . . .eloquent and illuminating" -- Saturday Review
"Here is a shocker, a real eye-opener that deserves wide attention" -- Publishers Weekly
About the Author
KATHRYN WATTERSON, an award-winning author and journalist, teaches writing at Princeton University. Among her several books is Women in Prison: Inside the Concrete Womb, also published by Northeastern University Press. Her short stories, essays, and articles have been published in a variety of national journals, magazines, and newspapers, including the Philadelphia Inquirer and New York Times.
--This text refers to the
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
23 of 27 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Absolutely Horrific What American Women Go Through,
By A Customer
This review is from: Women In Prison: Inside the Concrete Womb (Paperback)
I found it difficult to believe some of the sentences these women drew for the "petty crimes" they committed.After reading what they are subjected to they are expected to come out of prison better people!!!What I read in this book was unbelievable.I would expect this to happen in other countries but not ours. Why call these correctional facilities? Call them what they are punishment hell holes.Yes,perhaps they did break the law,but as one women said "she cashed a welfare check for $167 dollars and got two years. How many"business people go on vacations and fancy lunches with friends then write it off. Let's get real and do something to help people and not ship them off only to become more bitter about their lives. I was lucky I came from a loving, stable home and have had wonderful family to help me out when money was tight and I needed to talk. I was never even near a womens prison,but there but for the grace of God as the saying goes.I hope more people will read this book and we will all do what we can to help these women who are there now and maybe be a friend to the woman who needs help. I for one will be writing my locals officials to see what the prison reforms are now.
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Well Researched And Informative,
This review is from: Women In Prison: Inside the Concrete Womb (Hardcover)
A look at women in prison, this book describes in detail the inhumane psychological conditions in which most incarcerated people have to live. There are few surprises here -- it is nor secret that prisons to nothing to deter crime in the least -- quite the opposite, in fact -- and that most people who are incarcerated could be much more effectively rehabilitated using other means, except for the minority of violent offenders. Although the author gives an accurate and detailed description of prisons as they really are, I doubt if anyone will take notice since she does not go to much trouble to give any reasonable alternatives. An excellent study in one of the most atavistic practices of the modern era.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent Resource,
By AKAV8TOR "N747SP" (Anchorage, ALASKA) - See all my reviews
This review is from: Women In Prison: Inside the Concrete Womb (Paperback)
This book provide a great insight into some of the oldest female institutions in America. It brings together inmate interviews and phsychological analysis to allow you the reader to understand the mindset of both the inmate as well as the leaders of the facilities.The subject of females in prison is a taboo topic in America and this book shines a great light on the inconsistant ways in which laws are applied based on when and what era a person was convicted and the type of crimes they were convicted of. The book provides several examples of how easy it is for any person placed in state custody as a child to get lost and shuffled in a large infrastructure under government control only leading to further government institutionalization because of the size and scope of the organization. Very well written and easy to comprehend.
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