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Behind These Doors by Alex South (Hardback)
£16.99
Available
Product Ref. (e.g. ISBN, SKU)
9781399707558
Published:
06 Jul 2023
Format:
Hardback
Number of pages:
339 pages
Dimensions:
130x216x28mm
Weight:
0.480kgs
Author:
The men I have worked with and the staff I've worked alongside over the last ten years in prison have taught me strength, compassion, courage, and fundamentally, the need to talk, the need to share and the need to tell these stories. These are the stories of lives lived, lost and taken, behind walls so high we can pretend they hide another world entirely. But at what cost? 'Behind These Doors' is a provocative, insightful and illuminating interrogation of what it is to live and to work in the UK's most infamous prisons. The individuals Alex introduces us to are, for the most part, living on the margins of society and the impact of the cycles of violence that so often accompany those lives is clear to see.
*As heard on Radio 4's Book of the Week*
'A true, compassionate and honest account of what it is to work in our prisons.' Dr Gwen Adshead, Sunday Times bestselling author of The Devil You Know
'A vivid, unsentimental insight into a world that needs to be seen . . . a powerful reminder of how far we are from rehabilitating our prisons.' The Observer
'A superb, compelling book . . . powerful.' Daily Mail
'This is a beautifully written account about hope and optimism, of humanity, realism, resilience and the complexity of people.' Professor David Wilson
__________
'The men I have worked with and the staff I've worked alongside over the last ten years in prison have taught me strength, compassion, courage, and fundamentally, the need to talk, the need to share and the need to tell these stories. These are the stories of lives lived, lost and taken, behind walls so high we can pretend they hide another world entirely. But at what cost?
Few people leave prison unchanged. It's a place heavy with suffering, a place where you will find dangerous, vulnerable, and forgotten people. But for Alex South, it was a place where she also found hope.
In this powerful and moving memoir, Alex attempts to make sense of her experiences in prison by confronting the harsh reality of life on the inside and examining them from different angles. In an overwhelmingly masculine environment, where strength and aggression are routinely on show, Alex's view is particularly important.
Capturing the confusion and contradictions of prison, Alex presents a life that is often hidden from the public. Changing our perceptions, Behind These Doors shows the many devastating, but often inspiring, consequences prison can have.
__________
'I was completely gripped whilst reading it - it's such a powerful memoir and one that shines a light into a world most of the public rarely see.' Nikki Smith, author of The Beach Party
About the Author: Alex South is a former Prison Officer with ten years' experience working for Her Majesty's Prison Service. She has worked at HMP Whittemore, HMP Wormwood Scrubs and HMP Belmarsh as an Officer, Senior Officer and Custodial Manager. During her time at these prisons, Alex was deployed to numerous live incidents in her capacity as a trained riot commander and hostage negotiator. In 2017, Alex was awarded a Winston Churchill Fellowship to travel abroad and research the impact on prison officers of their working environment. Alex has a BSc in Psychology and Criminology and a Masters in Forensic Psychology, both with the Open University. In 2020, she won first place in the Beechmore Life Writing Competition. Her entry considered the effect prison has on a 21-year-old prisoner at the beginning of his first sentence, and an experienced officer on the brink of burnout
| Number of pages | 339 |
|---|
We will despatch your order as quickly as we can. If, for whatever reason, a product is out of stock we will contact you to discuss the likely delivery time or an alternative product.
| First Item | 2 Items & Over | |
|---|---|---|
| UK | £3.75 | £5.00 |
| EU | £15.00 | £30.00 |
| USA & Canada | £30.00 | £50.00 |
| Rest of the World | £45.00 | £60.00 |
| Collect in Store | free | free |
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