I have not done a good job as of late keeping up on my book postings. Now that I'm finally on vacation, I'm going to try to post about my little backlog of things I've read.
Life on the Outside is the story of Elaine Bartlett, a woman who served sixteen years in prison under New York's Rockefeller drug laws. Bartlett acted as a courier of cocaine one time, had no previous offenses, and received a 15 to life sentence. She was the matriarch of a difficult brood back in Manhattan, who she continued to try and lead from the walls of state prisons. The book itself is a very convincing indictment of the Rockefeller drug laws, and also a well-done portrait of a dynamic, and occasionally tragic, figure. Gonnerman, the author and Village Voice reporter, has a matter-of-fact tone that doesn't necessarily wow, but keeps an appropriate distance. It's not as good as Random Family, but it's a welcome addition to the genre.
Posted by waking slow at July 9, 2006 09:04 AM