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A review by corncobwebs
Hole in My Life by Jack Gantos
Very thought-provoking. This would be a great book club selection. Here are some of the things it made me think about:
-The efficacy of the prison system. Gantos was relatively lucky in that he worked in the prison hospital as an x-ray technician, so he learned a valuable skill - but not all prisoners had similar opportunities. It seemed liked Gantos' prison experience (outside of his hospital work) was pretty oppressive and not at all helpful in terms of making positive life changes. He was in prison in the early 70's, but I kind of doubt our prison system has improved much since then.
-Is there any benefit to sending young people to prison for non-violent crimes (ie, crimes that essentially amount to making a dumb mistake)? I learned recently that the brain isn't fully developed until an individual reaches 25 years of age. So if someone is under 25 and makes a bad judgement call, I don't think they should be punished so harshly. They should be held accountable to some degree, but in that kind of situation, prison is only going to ruin lives - not save them.
-the transformative effect the written word can have on lives. Gantos got through his prison sentence by reading and writing. His goal to become a writer kept him going, and he's a successful author today, despite having a criminal record. I believe very strongly that reading and writing are ways to make sense of our lives and become better people, and this book re-enforced that belief.
-The efficacy of the prison system. Gantos was relatively lucky in that he worked in the prison hospital as an x-ray technician, so he learned a valuable skill - but not all prisoners had similar opportunities. It seemed liked Gantos' prison experience (outside of his hospital work) was pretty oppressive and not at all helpful in terms of making positive life changes. He was in prison in the early 70's, but I kind of doubt our prison system has improved much since then.
-Is there any benefit to sending young people to prison for non-violent crimes (ie, crimes that essentially amount to making a dumb mistake)? I learned recently that the brain isn't fully developed until an individual reaches 25 years of age. So if someone is under 25 and makes a bad judgement call, I don't think they should be punished so harshly. They should be held accountable to some degree, but in that kind of situation, prison is only going to ruin lives - not save them.
-the transformative effect the written word can have on lives. Gantos got through his prison sentence by reading and writing. His goal to become a writer kept him going, and he's a successful author today, despite having a criminal record. I believe very strongly that reading and writing are ways to make sense of our lives and become better people, and this book re-enforced that belief.