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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
Kathryn Bonella is a journalist who travelled to Bali to get an "inside scoop" on Hotel K, the prison in Kerobokan, a notorious place in Bali, housing many interesting criminals. Most of the criminals in this prison are in there due to drug related crimes, and there are a lot of foreigners from the Western world, caught for smuggling or using drugs.
Bali has a zero tolerance for drug related crimes and the death penalty can be applied. However, inside Hotel K, drug use, manufacture and sales are in abundance, with the guards more often than not being directly involved.
The author interviewed a few inmates for the purposes of telling this story, and a lot of the inmates are quite shocking. I found it very interesting to learn about this prison. If one ever does travel to Bali, stay as far away from drugs as possible, don't even stand around people doing drugs. Ending up in a prison like this would be my worst nightmare. The author also touches on the story of Schapelle Corby, who was sentenced to 20 years, and maintains that she is innocent and had drugs planted on her. If she is innocent, it's a terrifying story.
Great story, although it was a bit all over the place with a lot of repetition.
Bali has a zero tolerance for drug related crimes and the death penalty can be applied. However, inside Hotel K, drug use, manufacture and sales are in abundance, with the guards more often than not being directly involved.
The author interviewed a few inmates for the purposes of telling this story, and a lot of the inmates are quite shocking. I found it very interesting to learn about this prison. If one ever does travel to Bali, stay as far away from drugs as possible, don't even stand around people doing drugs. Ending up in a prison like this would be my worst nightmare. The author also touches on the story of Schapelle Corby, who was sentenced to 20 years, and maintains that she is innocent and had drugs planted on her. If she is innocent, it's a terrifying story.
Great story, although it was a bit all over the place with a lot of repetition.
The dark side of Bali is brought to the front and center with this book. It recounts horrors in the heart of Kuta - a wall away from the tourists and nightlife. The sheer volume of corruption is unbelievable!
Hotel Kerobokan is the nickname for Kerobokan Jail, Bali's most notorious prison. It hosts many of Bali's most infamous prisoners:- the Bali Bombers, the Bali 9 and Schapelle Corby to name a few. Hotel Kerobokan gives an unprecedented insight into life in the prison, covering the appalling conditions, the heavy drug use, and how the inherent corruption within the prison system allows for wild sex parties and days out to the beach. The stories in the book are backed up by the numerous prisoner interviews present, leaving no doubt that the author is giving a truthful account of life within Kerobokan Jail.
I don't read an awful lot of non-fiction books, but having read Snowing in Bali, another of Bonella's books, I was very interested to read this one and find out more about life within one of the worlds more notorious prisons.
I find Kathryn's writing style very easy to read. Her background in investigative journalism really shines through. She has a great talent for getting her facts and information across in such a way that as a reader you're hooked and really feel the need to keep reading to learn more.
It's taken me a few days to write this review as I'm finding it hard to put some of my thoughts into words, especially when it comes to talking about the people within the book. There is a huge part of me that has very little sympathy with the prisoners, especially considering most of the ones we meet are there for drugs offences which I have virtually zero tolerance for. We all know that Indonesia has very harsh penalties for drug trafficking, if people still choose to do it then they have to accept the consequences when they get caught.
That said, the harshness of conditions within the jail goes beyond anything you could imagine, and the level of corruption within the Indonesian justice system is simply terrifying. In short, if you have money you're likely to have a better experience, provided you keep paying. That can be anything from shorter sentancing to better living conditions within the jail or even days out. Many prisoners are allowed to carry on their criminal activities from within the jail, often helped by the guards. To say that the jail does little to rehabilitate prisoners is a huge understatement. If anything it is more likely to encourage them to continue. We meet several repeat offenders within the book.
All in all this is both a fascinating and horrifying read. Anyone who has ever visited Bali, or plans to, should read it.
I don't read an awful lot of non-fiction books, but having read Snowing in Bali, another of Bonella's books, I was very interested to read this one and find out more about life within one of the worlds more notorious prisons.
I find Kathryn's writing style very easy to read. Her background in investigative journalism really shines through. She has a great talent for getting her facts and information across in such a way that as a reader you're hooked and really feel the need to keep reading to learn more.
It's taken me a few days to write this review as I'm finding it hard to put some of my thoughts into words, especially when it comes to talking about the people within the book. There is a huge part of me that has very little sympathy with the prisoners, especially considering most of the ones we meet are there for drugs offences which I have virtually zero tolerance for. We all know that Indonesia has very harsh penalties for drug trafficking, if people still choose to do it then they have to accept the consequences when they get caught.
That said, the harshness of conditions within the jail goes beyond anything you could imagine, and the level of corruption within the Indonesian justice system is simply terrifying. In short, if you have money you're likely to have a better experience, provided you keep paying. That can be anything from shorter sentancing to better living conditions within the jail or even days out. Many prisoners are allowed to carry on their criminal activities from within the jail, often helped by the guards. To say that the jail does little to rehabilitate prisoners is a huge understatement. If anything it is more likely to encourage them to continue. We meet several repeat offenders within the book.
All in all this is both a fascinating and horrifying read. Anyone who has ever visited Bali, or plans to, should read it.
dark
informative
sad
medium-paced
This book made me never want to go to prison, at least not for very long.
This was selected for our book club.
Such an easy read, but so terribly boring and repetitive.
Also a clear bias (the author is friends, and biographer, of a convicted inmate).
Such an easy read, but so terribly boring and repetitive.
Also a clear bias (the author is friends, and biographer, of a convicted inmate).
This would have been far more interesting if it didn't read like a college essay. It was repetitive/redundant and full of really useless quotes. I kept feeling like the author's intent was for the reading to feel bad about the prisoners' living conditions and situation, which just irritated the crap out of me. Sorry, if the wanted to not live in squalor, perhaps they shouldn't have murdered/raped/stole/dealt drugs. I have no sympathy for that. They chose their path.