57 pages • 1 hour read
Shane BauerAmerican Prison: A Reporter’s Undercover Journey into the Business of Punishment
Nonfiction | Book | Adult | Published in 2018A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Before You Read
Super Short Summary
American Prison by Shane Bauer explores the private prison industry via Bauer's undercover experience as a corrections officer at Louisiana’s Winn prison, detailing profit-driven neglect and understaffing, and paralleling this with a historical examination of American convict labor's exploitative roots.
Reviews & Readership
Review Roundup
American Prison by Shane Bauer is praised for its gripping and investigative journalism, offering a deep dive into the for-profit prison industry. Readers appreciate its compelling narrative and eye-opening insights. However, some critiques mention its intense and disturbing content, questioning its potential bias due to the author's activist background. Overall, it is a powerful exposé.
Who Should Read American Prison?
Readers who appreciated The New Jim Crow by Michelle Alexander or The Sun Does Shine by Anthony Ray Hinton will likely be captivated by American Prison. This book appeals to those interested in investigative journalism, social justice, and the complexities of the American penal system.
RecommendedReading Age
18+yearsBook Details
Incarceration
Social Justice
Race / Racism
Journalism
American Literature
Post-War Era
Identity: Race
Values/Ideas: Power & Greed
Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice