Rating: 
Summary: Excellent - a must read!
Review: Wow, I could not put this book down. What an excellent read. Learner is a wonderful writer -- I hope he continues on his writing path. I didn't know if I would like a book about prison life -- this is exceptional.
Rating: 
Summary: funny story
Review: Yes, a very funny story about life in prison. Hard as that is
to believe, I laughed more at Lerner's story than at most
humor books. It takes a very unusual gift to find that much
to laugh about while serving a prison sentence, especially in
a place so full of repression and hatred as where he was confined. Note I am talking about the attitude and treatment of
the "guards", not the inmates; it's too bad every state legislator can't be made to read this story so they can see what
a failure our prison systems are. The states continue to send
more and more people to prison, as they treat them worse as time
goes by, and they have created systems where relatively ordinary
people are either terrorized or indoctrinated into the criminal
lifestyle, and genuine criminals are transformed into more vicious, depraved people, then all are released into society
worse than they entered the system.This author coped far better than most would have, and this
funny, entertaining book is the result. Everyone who has ever worked in a cubicle, or attended some
required corporate training, will find much to laugh at, because
Lerner constantly finds, and points out, parallels between his
training at Pacific Bell and the situations he encounters in
his Nevada prison. And his corporate training helps him through
many periods of doubt and crises. Who would have thought? Some readers carp at the author's explanation of his presence
in prison. Who cares? It does detract a bit from an otherwise
funny story, but he is not writing a Supreme Court brief or
submitting an affidavit in support thereof, so why should the
reader tear apart his explanation. His pre-prison story is
rather ordinary, but one he felt he had to tell, so we should
accept it for what it's worth and then go back to the "fun and
games." We should all hope we never get personally acquainted with the
culture of prison, but if we do, we will be lucky if we make
as many friends, or have as many good stories, as this author. His story of how he copes, and how he manages to find something
worthwhile out of a miserable, wasted existence, can be inspiring. We have to make the best of what we have, and more
of us can learn something useful from this story, while being
entertained at the same time, than we think. Most of us will
benefit from reading this man's story.
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