Rating: 
Summary: Revealing, heartbreaking, harrowing..........
Review: Ted Conover's brilliantly insightful guide to a year in the life of a corrections officer at Sing Sing prison truly deserves the accolades it has received. I was curious as to what prison life is like as viewed from 'the other side', and, as Conover reveals, the officers are as much 'prisoners' (albeit of a different kind) as those they guard. The stress levels are revealed to be almost unbearable - C.O.s face the threat of violence every day - prisons are understaffed, and the high turn over rate, at Sing Sing in particular, means that inexperienced officers, otherwise known as 'newjacks' must make difficult decisions on the spur of the moment.Conover's honesty is to be applauded - he is sympathetic to those officers who are truly just there to earn a living, and reserves his scorn for those sadistic officers who get a kick out of what has to be one of the worst jobs on the planet. Conover's sympathies also lie with certain prisoners - although his initital liberalism upon entering Sing Sing has most definitely been tempered by the end of his stint. 'Newjack' is a brilliantly written, thoroughly depressing and utterly essential book, that raises more questions than it answers - a truly thought-provoking work.
Rating:
Summary: Life Inside Prison from a Guard's Perspective
Review: Sorry, I meant C.O, or correctional officer. This is a fascinating and engrossing look at the inside of one of the toughest prisons around. Author Conover worked as a C.O inside Sing Sing for two years and has quite a story to tell. Even if you are not interested in criminal justice, you will find it difficult to put this book down. I definitely have a much better understanding of what it is like to work inside a prison and have a newfound appreciation for what a C.O. goes through on the job. An excellent book
Rating:
Summary: Thinking Outside "The Box"
Review: Ted Conover is well-known for picking a topic and completely immersing himself in it. He's done it (and written books about his experiences) with hoboes and illegal Mexican immigrants. This time, Ted Conover has become "T. Conover, New York State Corrections Officer." Conover initially sought more conventional routes for his journey into the life of a C.O. After being denied the opportunity to shadow a rookie officer (or "newjack") Conover decided to take matters into his own hands and go through the entire process firsthand. He endures the grueling weeks at the Academy, and is then plunged into life at Sing Sing, a notorious prison in Long Island. Conover's vivid accounts of his experiences at Sing Sing almost make you feel as though you're there with him. Like all the other newjacks, he is often scared, and frequently has no idea how to handle the situations that arise. Learning how to traverse a gallery without being splattered with human waste isn't something they teach in the Academy. Unlike many other books about prison, "Newjack" gives the reader the experience of meeting a variety of prisoners and guards. Conover doesn't choose inmates and officers to focus on, rather, he tells us of his experiences with a plethora of people in various situations. Meet Sergeant Wickersham, an old-timer who's still haunted by memories of being held hostage by inmates. Despite his unsympathetic nature, it's hard not to feel for him when Conover describes the scars on his arms left from cigarette burns. Then there's Larson, an inmate who is called "Powerful" by other inmates and frequently draws in fellow inmates and officers for conversation. And Delacruz, an inmate who has translated a quote from "The Diary of Anne Frank" into Spanish and tattooed it across his back. "Newjack" is stark. Nothing's glossed over. However, despite the fact that we must admire Conover's dedication to investigating life inside a federal prison and the lengths he goes to to tell us, it's hard to forget one hard fact -- unlike thousands of others, Conover can quit whenever he wants. He doesn't need to work in a prison to feed his children or keep a roof over his head. To be fair, he speaks extensively of the cirsumstances of his coworkers, and how they ended up employed at Sing Sing. This is not a quick read. However, it's one of those books you don't want to end. I found myself not at all bothered that it took a while to finish. Ultimately, you're left with your illusions of "Oz" and "The Shawshank Redemption" shattered. In its place, you're wondering why the system is like this. Why, as inmate Larson says, are we building new prisons for the children of tomorrow instead of trying to educate them and improve their situation? And, what kind of system declares a book like "Newjack" contraband (which the NY Department of Corrections did upon its publication), instead of using its words and observations to make changes to the system? It leaves me with a feeling of anger at the penal system, and a touch of foreboding about the road down which it seems to be headed.
Rating:
Summary: SUPER
Review: The author has clearly done his homework in every way. The book is excellent and never boring. It makes the subject matter come alive. One one of the best books ever written on penal institutions.
Rating:
Summary: Rueful, often painful, sometimes humorous
Review: As in "Coyotes" and "Rolling Nowhere," Ted Conover goes undercover, immersing himself in the world he writes about. This time, instead of traveling with undocumented field workers and hoboes, he takes a job as a prison guard ("corrections officer" is the preferred term) to learn something of the inner workings of the American penal system. Over a period of eight months, after his training, he is assigned to what is apparently the most volatile, chaotic, and fabled prisons in NY state, Sing Sing. At least one reviewer said of this book when it was first published that the author had compromised his objectivity by being a participant in the subject he was reporting on. By becoming a prison guard, he loses sight of the perspective of the prisoners, and a not-so-subtle bias creeps into what he writes. In fact, I think that's what makes this book so interesting. What Conover gives us is a rueful, often painful, sometimes humorous account of his own transformation as a "newjack" corrections officer, dealing daily with frustration, danger, and the absurdities of life in prison. His viewpoint is the difference between the war correspondent and the grunt in the trenches. You get a direct glimpse into the hearts and minds of prison guards and acquire some understanding of how they see the world they inhabit, as well as the toll it takes on them as individuals. I say "glimpse" because many of the men and women in this book have made a career of corrections. Some of them are survivors of prison revolts; at least two were taken hostage. Given the self-protection that the profession requires, they reveal little to Conover, except what he can read from their sometimes inscrutable behavior. Even so, Conover successfully breaks down the popular stereotypes of prison guards. After reading the book, you take the news of someone's being sent to prison somewhat differently. Instead of seeing them behind bars, you become aware of the men and women immediately responsible hour-by-hour for their incarceration. I heartily recommend this book. As you read, you wonder at Conover's sometimes foolhardy nerve and have only the book in your hands as evidence that he somehow survives the ordeal he has assigned himself. As a companion to this book, I also recommend Daniel Bergner's "God of the Rodeo," an equally compelling account of life inside Louisiana's Angola Prison.
Rating:
Summary: Excellence
Review: This book was excellent to say the least! It sucked me into this strange world of prison life through the eyes of a correctional officer. Realistic and in depth. It was truly the only book I've ever read where I actually felt disappointed when it ended! I believe this is the highest compliment one can make to the author. My sincere "Thanks" to Ted Conover.
Rating:
Summary: This Author Walked the Walk....!
Review: .....so that makes him able to "talk the talk" quite well! Really, I can't get enough of Ted Conover! His books are incredibly interesting. Conover always provides an angle, exploring uncharted territory and pushing the limits of his research New Jack delivers! Conover became a prison correction officer and writes with candor and impartiality on our criminal justice system from the inside out (but with an interesting twist). An enjoyable read!!!
Rating: 
Summary: A year in the life of a prison guard
Review: This book gives an inside view of the employees who work in the prison system. How often we have heard about prison from people who have served time there behind bars and how rarely we hear about people who serve time there as employees. Informative book.
Rating:
Summary: Wow, a Scary Look
Review: This author was brave. I do not think I would want to venture into this world, not even to write a book, but he did. The author got a job as a prison guard at what looks to be the worst prison in New York. Being the new guy he also was placed in the worst positions of the job - face to face guarding of the inmates. So he is in the most dangerous prison going the most dangerous job - the makings for a gripping book. The author does a good job of describing the downright horrible things that people do to one another. I knew that prison life was bad, but the level of violence, both inmate on inmate and inmate on guard is eye opening. How these guards go into these human wastelands and not have it destroy their souls, is beyond me. I do not think my office job stress could ever compare with the day to day hell prison guards face. This author takes there, right there at the forefront of the prison system. He very vividly tells us about all the horrible and some more human encounters he faced. He also provides us with a good view of how the prison guards work together to face this daily grind in what has to be one of the worst jobs in America. This is a very good book, well-written and easy to get through in a weekend. It should be mandatory reading for any teenage child to show them the "joys" of prison life. I think this book would appeal to the general reader and the true crime fan both as it is just that interesting and gripping.
Rating:
Summary: This Is Raw Action!
Review: Kudos to Conover who braved such an ordeal! What a story! It is amazing to try to conceive of such a seeming God-forsaken culture within the walls of anyplace. It is saddening and shocking at the same time to know that people can become so deprave or dehumanized. Conover is a great writer and presents a well-detailed picture of prison life as well as his own struggle to remain psychologically well just to get the story. His history of the prison system internationally is a masterpiece alone. I was amazed how much I learned psychologically, legally, interpersonally, spiritually, and so many other ways. But this book is not for the squeemish! It's purely raw--I mean raw! Wow! Brace yourself for this one!
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