Tales From The Jail

Tales from the Jail is a funny, moving and poignant account of an outsider’s encounters with the inmates of Tihar Jail. This unforgettable collection of short stories will give you a rare glimpse into the world of prisons and the lives of its inhabitants. It will take you on a personal journey through Tihar and introduce you to some of its most memorable characters. Most of all, it will give you hope. “The book is inspiring. It deeply touches sensitive aspects of human relationships and ends with a note of guarded optimism for elevation of the human mind and spirit.” – Soli Sorabjee, Former Attorney-General of India

An in-depth exploration of the Don Jail from its inception through jailbreaks and overcrowding to its eventual shuttering and rebirth. Conceived as a “palace for prisoners,” the Don Jail never lived up to its promise. Although based on progressive nineteenth-century penal reform and architectural principles, the institution quickly deteriorated into a place of infamy where both inmates and staff were in constant danger of violence and death. Its mid-twentieth-century replacement, the New Don, soon became equally tainted. Along with investigating the origins and evolution of Toronto’s infamous jail, The Don presents a kaleidoscope of memorable characters — inmates, guards, governors, murderous gangs, meddlesome politicians, harried architects, and even a pair of star-crossed lovers whose doomed romance unfolded in the shadow of the gallows. This is the story of the Don’s tumultuous descent from palace to hellhole, its shuttering and lapse into decay, and its astonishing modern-day metamorphosis. Speaker's Book Award 2021 — Shortlisted | Brass Knuckles Award for Best Nonfiction Crime Book 2022 — Shortlisted

Fausti 'the Fist' Dellacava is the most feared mobster in all of Gotham. But running the family business is proving to be problematic as the Feds start closing in. So what's a mobster to do to stay out of the slammer? Fausti chooses to go down the insanity route.

Tales From A Jail Cell is the literary reality of prison drama. Devon Anderson, the convict trapped in a cell, finds freedom in telling his creative short stories of incarceration to a group of visitors touring the cell blocks. From serious, sad, to humorous situations, he captures the reality behind the barb wired fences and walls of prison. Just remember: When you enter here you're locked in until your time is up. Lock in America.

A history of the 1885 "Squirrel Cage" rotary cell jail in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and information about some of the colorful prisoners housed there over the years and their crimes.

In the 1950s and '60s Neil Haugerud served as sheriff of Fillmore County in southeastern Minnesota. During this time, he and his wife and their four small children made their home in the building that housed the county jail. In Jailhouse Stories, Haugerud describes what it was like to live above a prison, where jailbirds and jailbreaks were part of family life. These are the reminiscences of a real-life Andy Griffith character, a man dedicated to maintaining order during both peaceful and turbulent days in rural America. Through the author we meet colorful characters on both sides of the law: for example, Doc Nehring, the county coroner, who uses dark humor to get through the grim duties of his job, and Irvin Johnson, who becomes the sheriff's friend despite his constant drinking and incarceration. Stories of domestic squabbles and infidelity are mixed with those of church functions and child rearing. Throughout the stories runs Haugerud's compassionate outlook on human nature. "I came to understand how people make a lot of mistakes, but in my view there are very few bad people, " he writes. The town where Haugerud lives is part Mayberry, part Twin Peaks. We get a glimpse into the lives of the town's citizens, whose problems range from the ordinary to the offbeat to the downright bizarre. In stories that are by turns heartwarming and sad, humorous and humane, Jailhouse Stories tells of the trials, tribulations, and pleasures of rural law enforcement during a bygone era.

Jodi Angel’s second story collection, You Only Get Letters from Jail, chronicles the lives of young men trapped in the liminal space between adolescence and adulthood. From picking up women at a bar hours after mom’s overdose to coveting a drowned girl to catching rattlesnakes with gasoline, Angel's characters are motivated by muscle cars, manipulative women, and the hope of escape from circumstances that force them either to grow up or give up. Haunted by unfulfilled dreams and disappointments, and often acting out of mixed intentions and questionable motives, these boys turned young men are nevertheless portrayed with depth, tenderness, and humanity. Angel’s gritty and heartbreaking prose leaves readers empathizing with people they wouldn't ordinarily trust or believe in.

As the first woman governor into HMP Strangeways and the notorious Dartmoor Prison, Governor Chris Duffin was a ground-breaker. In 'Jail Tales' she recounts some of the many stories and incidents from her twenty-year career both as a lowly 'screw' and as a prison governor. Whether it's flying out of the UK with a briefcase full of class A drugs, talking to the BBC News in her nightie, displaying a naked hunk's willy on her office wall, or having Myra Hindley as her tea-lady, these tales will amuse, entertain and definitely change your view of life behind bars.