Rating: 
Summary: Beautiful read
Review: Having just finished reading "The Prisoner's Wife," I am filled with emotion right now. BEAUTIFUL memoir that has me feeling like my heart, too, has been broken. Theirs is an incredible love story that had me riding an emotional rollercoaster, swooning and diving with every line, every single word. It touched me deeply, personally, and I will always think of Rashid and Asha. I'll wonder how they're doing, remember what they went through for love and whenever I see this book on my shelf and am reminded of their story, I'll count down the years remaining until they are together and free to love however they choose.
I have to admit that, at first, I was really skeptical, thinking that this was just typical jailhouse love where the prisoner will say whatever is necessary to keep contact with the outside world, get a few letters, some money, etc. But now I see things completely differently. My mind is open now because the love was so very evident on each page. Rashid and Asha share a love so many dream of. It is nowhere near perfect or easy (love never is) but it is definitely beautiful and sweet and heart wrenching and honest.
BEAUTIFULLY written, melancholy AND sweet, I absolutely adore this story and will recommend it to all of my friends.
Rating:
Summary: A Deeply Moving Love Story
Review: Bandele begins The Prisoner's Wife with "This is a love story." And it is. With poetic words and beautiful, descriptive detail, Bandele tells the reader how and why she came to marry a man serving 20 years to life, and what she has gained and sacrificed by being with him. She really bares her soul, and shares deeply personal and painful information about her past, and about her marriage. When I started reading this book, someone saw the title, and started saying how they couldn't understand why so many women marry men who are incarcerated. And, before I read this book, I wondered the same thing. But what I got out of The Prisoner's Wife is that just like in a relationship between two people in the outside world, asha and Rashid had needs, and they have helped one another in fulfilling those needs. Even though my own husband is not in prison, I saw a lot of similarities between asha and Rashid's relationship and ours. And I can understand 100% what she writes at the end of the first chapter: "We were exactly the same and we were completely different...never meant to be together...always meant to save each other." I was very touched by this story, and devoured this book in a day. The only thing I was disappointed by was the ending. I didn't quite understand the purpose of the letter, or what happened to make Bandele write it. And because of that lack of clarity, I was left wondering about their relationship. Otherwise, this was an excellent, beautiful, touching book.
Rating:
Summary: Beautiful... simply beautiful!
Review: I first read this book in 1999. It was like reading about my own life in someone else's words. This book inspired me so much that when my daughter was born, in September 2000, I named her Asha, after the beautiful systah who shared "our" story and "our" heart with the world and found a way to make it all sound beautiful. God Bless you, systah.
Rating:
Summary: Whew!
Review: If I could only feel a tenth of the love depicted in this memoir, well that would be.... My vocabulary doesn't have enough words to describe the depth of emotions I experienced while reading this book. I feel rejuvenated that a love like this exists between two souls.The memoir is well put together. The letters and other personal revelations express a significant story. The entire memoir flows lyrically, like one of Sonia Sanchez's poems. I'm not particularly a fan of love stories, but this is not your typical love story. The book at times was painful to read as I suddenly realized I'm reading a memoir and not fiction. These are real people I'm reading about here not just something out of someone's imagination. When I recommend this book, I usually end up saying "Just read it!" It's difficult to summarize. Love story, memoir, a book about prison marriage. These all seem inadequate descriptions of this memoir. It's much more than that. asha bandele revealed her life, emotions, pain and suffering.
Rating:
Summary: A haunting, gorgeously written tale
Review: asha bandele tells the truth about falling in love with a prisoner, a brother convicted of murder during a robbery gone bad. She meets him on a visit to the prison, where she has gone to read her work. bandele is an amazing poet, and in this memoir, the writing carries you along like a wave, hypnotic, painful, lyrical, unflinching. You begin to see how she could have fallen in love with Rashid, despite his past. You begin to believe in his transformation. You begin to understand. Your understanding is a testament to bandele's honesty, her refusal to pretend that reality is other than it is. And yet, as she says at the begining and the end of this book, This is a love story. Love flourishes even in barren, institutional places. A courageous book. Bravo, asha! I wish you well.
Rating: 
Summary: One Woman's Story
Review: I think this book tells a truly beautiful story of this woman and her prison relationship with her man. To me the book was a little slow and had a lot of typos that should have been caught. If a woman finds herself in love with a prisoner then this could be a good way to understand what some others are going through. However, her visits are nowhere as tough as some of the visits I've known California women to go through.
Rating:
Summary: I was looking for a love story
Review: I was looking for a love story...something that would move me. And I found it! Asha's memoir moved me to tears, moved me to laughter, moved me to anger, and even sexual emotions. This story evoked so much feeling in my heart. I couldn't put it down. I was left envious of her situation...because regardless of the extreme difficulty, she has something that is priceless: a love that is rare and hard to come by. A companion that fits her. Her life was (is) beyond tough, as is Rashid's. But in my opinion, it is because of the bad that they recognized and truly appreciated the good. I left the story praying I would find that genuineness some day. This memoir is worth the read! I am not saying it is perfect and leaves you feeling completely doubtless about the circumstances. I admit, I have many questions still. I wish I knew more about Rashid's ex girlfriend, who is raising his son. What of their relationship? Was it strong...is there any chance that they could get back together..and why didn't Asha ask those questions? I also felt that Rashid did so much for Asha...but that it wasn't quite clear how Asha helped Rashid grow. I guess sometimes, I felt the story was so one-sided, just Asha. But it is a memoir. It is her side of the story. It fulfills its purpose wonderfully. If anything, the book is worth reading simply because it is powerful enough to stir emotions inside of you...to stimulate you. It is very well written and I hope to read bandele's new novel Daughter very soon!
Rating: 
Summary: A Life's Journey
Review: As the author says in the beginning of this stunning memoir, this is a love story - and a beautifully told one at that. This memoir tells asha bandele's journey to find both love and, most importantly, herself. asha meets Rashid while doing poetry readings and workshops at the correctional facility where Rashid was serving time. Instantly attracted to one another, they played it cool and easy like many of us do at clubs, when we see someone of interest. What began as a friendship of mutual respect and admiration, grew into a love affair with that as the foundation. asha recounts her experience as a wife of a man in prison - the trips upstate to see him, their marriage ceremony in a corner of the visiting room, their conjugal visits. While these details give us all a glimpse into a world that we will never see, the most incredible part of this love story is the journey she took to find herself. Through her relationship with Rashid, asha was able to free herself of the internal prison she had created to soothe the pain of sexual abuse she experienced as a teenager. Although, a part of me wondered why she couldn't have experienced this growth on her own, I came to realize what freedom can come from a healthy and nourishing love. Often this kind of love gives us the courage to look at ourselves in an honest and unflinching way. The sections of the book where she recounts painful memories and truth-seeking were the most powerful for me. The love story that developed couldn't have occurred without her growing into her own woman. I highly recommend this beautifully written story to anyone looking for a glimpse at a world they would never see and for those looking to take a journey of love and self discovery. Tameshia
R.E.A.L Reviewers
Rating:
Summary: Lady in waiting
Review: asha's introduction of THE PRISONER'S WIFE: A Memoir begins with a glimpse of her life being a college-educated woman who happens to gain interest in an inmate while doing one of many poetry readings at a New York state prison. Sooner than later the readers will understand that the introduction has little or nothing to do with the story. This is a story about love. asha falls for Rashid but the feeling isn't immediately reciprocated by him. Instead, he waits, watches and then makes his move on the person who will soon become the love of his life - his wife.
asha gives you a first hand view of all her emotions that develop while she is a lady in waiting. Her emotions are like a hurricane... sometimes weak and sometimes strong enough to cause serious damage. The more she reveals herself to Rashid, the more she exposes the deep rooted issues that she never really came to grips with. She starts to question her ability to sustain, to abstain and to remain faithful to Rashid and their relationship. She questions her ability to continue to subject herself to the humiliations of visiting a prison.
Share asha's shame (of telling her parents) about her relationship with a prisoner and how taxing it becomes on her inner being. asha does an excellent job of recollecting her thoughts, letters, conversations and meetings with Rashid during their 8-year relationship. This memoir has you grasping for more... wanting to know the ultimate outcome. She made me feel as though I'd never really been in love after reading about their relationship.
THE PRISONER'S WIFE: A Memoir will have your emotions rising and falling with every intricate detail. A page-turner and a lesson learned.
Reviewed by Ess Mays
of The RAWSISTAZ Reviewers
Rating:
Summary: The Ultimate Love
Review: The Prisoner's Wife is an amazing love story. I admit, at first I bought it out of curiosity...how could someone marry a prisoner...and why? asha bandele masterfully chronicles a deep love rooted in frienship and unflinching honesty that has a strength one can barely imagine but secretly prays for in the recesses of our minds and with all of our spirit. The language of this memoir is without cliche and amazingly refreshing despite it being about a topic as old as time; a love story. bandele beings this book forewarning the reader that "this is a love story," and she does not come close to disappointing the reader. I fell in love with this poignant love story and pray with all of my spirit that I too may one day rise to love the way asha and her beloved did. This is a must read for anyone who has every asked what is it to be loved. Thank you asha.
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