Our Class: Trauma and Transformation in an American Prison
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- Author：Chris Hedges
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Summary
A haunting and powerfully moving book that gives voice to the poorest among us and lays bare the cruelty of a penal system that too often defines their lives。
Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Chris Hedges has taught courses in drama， literature， philosophy， and history since 2013 in the college degree program offered by Rutgers University at East Jersey State Prison and other New Jersey prisons。 In his first class at East Jersey State Prison， where students read and discussed plays by Amiri Baraka and August Wilson， among others， his class set out to write a play of their own。 In writing the play， Caged， which would run for a month in 2018 to sold-out audiences at The Passage Theatre in Trenton， New Jersey， and later be published， students gave words to the grief and suffering they and their families have endured， as well as to their hopes and dreams。 The class’s artistic and personal discovery， as well as transformation， is chronicled in heart-breaking detail in Our Class。 This book gives a human face and a voice to those our society too often demonizes and abandons。 It exposes the terrible crucible and injustice of America’s penal system and the struggle by those trapped within its embrace to live lives of dignity， meaning， and purpose。
Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist Chris Hedges has taught courses in drama， literature， philosophy， and history since 2013 in the college degree program offered by Rutgers University at East Jersey State Prison and other New Jersey prisons。 In his first class at East Jersey State Prison， where students read and discussed plays by Amiri Baraka and August Wilson， among others， his class set out to write a play of their own。 In writing the play， Caged， which would run for a month in 2018 to sold-out audiences at The Passage Theatre in Trenton， New Jersey， and later be published， students gave words to the grief and suffering they and their families have endured， as well as to their hopes and dreams。 The class’s artistic and personal discovery， as well as transformation， is chronicled in heart-breaking detail in Our Class。 This book gives a human face and a voice to those our society too often demonizes and abandons。 It exposes the terrible crucible and injustice of America’s penal system and the struggle by those trapped within its embrace to live lives of dignity， meaning， and purpose。
Reviews
Chris Roberts
，
Those convicted of homicide Are not worthy of earthly animationCondemned prisoner Displays time and space disaffect Executioner as God Complex It's all done with mirrors， yes， smoky mirrorsThe murderer executed in false-real-timeThe electrocuted prisoner elevates world oxygen stores。 #poemChris Roberts， Patron Saint to Billy Alcatraz Those convicted of homicide Are not worthy of earthly animationCondemned prisoner Displays time and space disaffect Executioner as God Complex It's all done with mirrors， yes， smoky mirrorsThe murderer executed in false-real-timeThe electrocuted prisoner elevates world oxygen stores。 #poemChris Roberts， Patron Saint to Billy Alcatraz 。。。more
Charles
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Incredible A deep unveiling of a dark reality that is hidden to many behind a veneer of privilege and social ignorance。
Kelly Parker
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I thought I was going to be reading a whole book about the author’s experience teaching a class of prisoners。 Instead， the entire first half seemed more like a dissertation， with little included about the prisoners themselves。 I almost stopped reading several times， but stuck with it， though， because I read another review that said about halfway through， he started actually writing about the prisoners。 Sure enough， that’s what happened。 That’s also when the book got interesting。 Reading about wh I thought I was going to be reading a whole book about the author’s experience teaching a class of prisoners。 Instead， the entire first half seemed more like a dissertation， with little included about the prisoners themselves。 I almost stopped reading several times， but stuck with it， though， because I read another review that said about halfway through， he started actually writing about the prisoners。 Sure enough， that’s what happened。 That’s also when the book got interesting。 Reading about what these men went through as children and young men before and after their convictions was fascinating and heartbreaking。 The very end of the book became about the author again， as he lectured some more， which was a disappointment。 This book would have been much better served with more of the men and a lot less of the writer。 Thanks to #netgalley and #simonschuster for this ARC of #ourclass in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Teri
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The author details his experience teaching in a prison。 Through his eyes and the stories， plays and dialogue of the students/prisoners we learn of their lives and incarceration。 A humanizing look at prisons and the systems that keep people down。 Chris Hedges’ ability to engage with and develop trust 。the inmates in his classes and his experience learning about prison culture was interesting and relevant。 I wanted to like this book more than I did， the stories that the students tell are indeed po The author details his experience teaching in a prison。 Through his eyes and the stories， plays and dialogue of the students/prisoners we learn of their lives and incarceration。 A humanizing look at prisons and the systems that keep people down。 Chris Hedges’ ability to engage with and develop trust 。the inmates in his classes and his experience learning about prison culture was interesting and relevant。 I wanted to like this book more than I did， the stories that the students tell are indeed powerful but the writing was lacking in places for me。**I received an electronic ARC from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and unbiased review of this book， 。。。more
Megan
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Chris Hedges， an acclaimed journalist， went into a New Jersey prison to teach drama and English Literature through a Rutgers University program。 He did not know he would walk out with a play written by his students。 This book details one class in which the prisoners write a play in reflection of their lived experiences， and it eventually ends up on the stage in New Jersey。As with any social justice book this one was incredibly eye-opening。 I have read from several prisoner perspectives and heard Chris Hedges， an acclaimed journalist， went into a New Jersey prison to teach drama and English Literature through a Rutgers University program。 He did not know he would walk out with a play written by his students。 This book details one class in which the prisoners write a play in reflection of their lived experiences， and it eventually ends up on the stage in New Jersey。As with any social justice book this one was incredibly eye-opening。 I have read from several prisoner perspectives and heard their stories but not all are the same。 Not all have the same outcome。 And in this book we got to see prisoners feel important， heard， understood， and taught。 It was a side of prison most don't get to see。Reading this book felt like I was attending the class。 Hedges had many excerpts and asked questions through out the book provoking thoughts for his students but also for the reader。 My only complaint was that it was too many excerpts， especially in the beginning， it was hard to connect with this classes story when we kept getting into the plays subject matter。However what I truly loved about this book was hearing from the students and how they used real life experiences to create scenes in their play。 It was beautiful， heart wrenching， and very vulnerable。 Thanks to Netgalley and Simon and Schuster for the ARC in exchange for an honest review。 。。。more
Luanne Ollivier
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Fiction is my favorite genre - it's a great escape to get lost in a book。 That being said， I do also like to read non-fiction titles that challenge my beliefs， expose me to lives outside of my own perspective and have an impact on society。 It is books about people that draw me in the most。 Chris Hedges' new book， Our Class: Trauma and Transformation in an American Prison is my latest listen - and its powerful。Hedges is a Presbyterian minister， a former war correspondent and a Pulitzer prize winn Fiction is my favorite genre - it's a great escape to get lost in a book。 That being said， I do also like to read non-fiction titles that challenge my beliefs， expose me to lives outside of my own perspective and have an impact on society。 It is books about people that draw me in the most。 Chris Hedges' new book， Our Class: Trauma and Transformation in an American Prison is my latest listen - and its powerful。Hedges is a Presbyterian minister， a former war correspondent and a Pulitzer prize winning author。 In 2013 he started teaching in the college degree program offered by Rutgers University at the East Jersey State Prison。 In that first class at the prison， the students started reading Black American playwrights， poets and leaders， with the goal being to write and stage their own play。The students share their own histories， hopes， dreams and disappointments and these experiences form the basis of the play。 Their recounting of life in the prison system are hard to listen to。 The treatment inside the prison walls is degrading， cruel， racist， appalling and dehumanizing。 The writing of the play， the learning， the discussion， the interior soul searching and being part of a dynamic group with the same goal， and the continued success of those who took part is a testament to the program and the ideology behind it。 And cathartic for the participants。I enjoyed hearing each man's story - they are raw and powerful。 Hedges weaves other articles， history and other leader's lives into the book。 "It exposes the terrible crucible and injustice of America’s penal system and the struggle by those trapped within its embrace to live lives of dignity， meaning， and purpose。"I've said it before and I'll say it again - there are times when listening draws me deeper into a book， rather than reading a physical copy。 Our Class is one of those cases。 Prentice Onayemi was the reader and his performance was excellent。 Onayemi has a rich， full， resonant tone to his voice that is so pleasant to listen to。 His speaking is modulated and his pacing is perfect。 There are many emotional elements to this audiobook and Onayemi captures them without losing that resonance or becoming strident。 Instead， that low tone seems to underline and emphasize the work with quiet power。 He was the perfect choice for the narrator。 。。。more
Drea
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Important read for all of us to get a glimpse inside the prison system in our country。 The author had a class of students who applied and were selected from the enormous number within the prison。 A lot of books were mentioned and taught in the class - books that I admire。 Throughout the book， the author adds quotes and it threw me off a hit in the flow of the book。 I’m glad I read it and am grateful to Simon and Schuster for the gifted copy。
Jean
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While a heavy topic and， for me， not a fast read， it tells a powerful message。 The evolution of policing from back in the time of slavery to how it is still being practiced today。 I enjoyed getting to know some of the prisoners and their circumstances and the prejudices and biases both inside the prison and out。 This book makes one think。Thank you NetGalley， the publisher and author， for an advanced copy。
Janelle
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Chris Hedges has been teaching in prisons in New Jersey since 2013。 This book is mostly about a drama class where he gets his students to write a play about their experience in the prison system。 It’s not an easy book to read， the dehumanisation and degradations that these men suffer is appalling。 Prison conditions， the individual stories of his various students， the plays they study and discuss， made this an emotional read for me （yes， I cried quite a few times）。 Hedges is always worth reading。
Jennifer
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I debated between 3 and 4 star because the story is important and the writing is clear and fast-paced， but there are quite a few places where the author repeats content。 I did enjoy getting to know the prisoners。 Through their stories， I learned that even innocent prisoners suffered trauma as youth。 Yet， we have reduced prisons to warehouses where prisoners are marginalized， endangered and labeled for the rest of their lives。 Prisons are basically 21st-century plantations。 This is unacceptable。I I debated between 3 and 4 star because the story is important and the writing is clear and fast-paced， but there are quite a few places where the author repeats content。 I did enjoy getting to know the prisoners。 Through their stories， I learned that even innocent prisoners suffered trauma as youth。 Yet， we have reduced prisons to warehouses where prisoners are marginalized， endangered and labeled for the rest of their lives。 Prisons are basically 21st-century plantations。 This is unacceptable。In this book， the author tells how prisoners in one of his classes drew together and wrote a play that tells the story of the streets and prison。 The play is moving and heartbreaking。I’m walking away from this book with a better understanding of the prison system and a greater compassion for prisoners。 And I remain committed to working to reform the system and love prisoners and their families well。 。。。more
Jeffrey Anthony
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I received this book from my local， locally owned， bookstore as a bonus for spending so much on books， as the copy I received is a promotional copy。 Do we need another book that lays out the injustice of our carceral state， in which we go over pages and pages of data that show the rise of poverty that tracks the rise of the Chicago School of macroeconomic shock doctrine championed by Milton Friedman that dislocated labor productivity gains from wage growth and instead transferred those gains to I received this book from my local， locally owned， bookstore as a bonus for spending so much on books， as the copy I received is a promotional copy。 Do we need another book that lays out the injustice of our carceral state， in which we go over pages and pages of data that show the rise of poverty that tracks the rise of the Chicago School of macroeconomic shock doctrine championed by Milton Friedman that dislocated labor productivity gains from wage growth and instead transferred those gains to the asset owning class through policy tools like the Phillips Curve， which created a permanent unemployable class of Americans that were， and still are， sacrificed to maintain a consistent YoY increase in asset prices whereby this degrading， spiritually crushing policy impels people to find any means necessary to survive， who are then caught in a system that criminalizes their rational behavior， and turns them into a permanent slave-labor class in the carceral state？No we don't need more data， what we need is more humanizing of this state of things。 This book does that and I applaud Chris Hedges for being the instrument through which the humanization of these fellow subjugated citizens is transmitted。I want to share two sections from the book that resonated with me。 The first is from Chris the second from Dr。 Cornel West。"The role of art is transcendence， creating the capacity for empathy， especially for those who appear strange， foreign， or different。 Art is not about entertainment， or at least not solely about entertainment。 It goes deeper than that。It's about dealing with what we call the nonrational forces in human life。 These forces are not irrational。 They are nonrational。 They are absolutely essential to being whole as a human being。 They are not quantifiable。 They cannot be measured empirically。 Yet they are real-maybe more real than those things we can see and touch and count。 Grief， beauty， truth， justice， a life of meaning， the struggle with our own mortality， love。 Sigmund Freud said he could write about sex， but he could never write about love。These nonrational forces are honored by the artist。 The origins of all religions are fused with art， poetry， music。 This is because religion， like art， deals with transcendence， with empathy， with justice， with love- realities we experience viscerally but that are often beyond articulation。 Religion， like art， allows us to hear” -Chris Hedges"August Wilson said that Black people authorize an alternative reality from the nightmarish present reality by performance- performance in a communal context。 There is a call and a response。 This creates agency。 It creates self-confidence and self-respect。 You saw this in churches under slavery。 You saw this in communal music and art under Jim and Jane Crow。 Ma Rainey。 Bessie Smith。 Sarah Vaughan。 Mary Lou Williams。 Miles Davis。 Duke Ellington。 Count Basie。 I decided long ago to stay on the love train Curtis Mayfield talked about when he sang 'People get ready，' the love train of the Isley Brothers， the love train of the O'Jays。 Those are not just songs。 They are existential declarations of a certain way of being in the world。 I come from a people who've been Jim and Jane Crowed， enslaved and despised and devalued， who dished out to the world the love supreme of John Coltrane， dished out to the world the love and essays of a James Baldwin。 How is it that these particular people， so hated， had the courage and the imagination to dish out love-figures like Martin King and Toni Morrison， and a whole host of others？” -Dr。 Cornel West。 。。。more
Bethany Ricci
，
3。5 Stars - ARC Copy received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 This book is unique look into our （USA） criminal justice system。 As someone who works with those on parole or coming out of prison I was extremely interested in this book。 It was hard at times to read due to the heavy subject matter。 There were moments of joy and perseverance also， but there was a lot of heartbreak in and throughout this book， both with the inmates stories and Hedges detailed descriptions of prison cel 3。5 Stars - ARC Copy received via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 This book is unique look into our （USA） criminal justice system。 As someone who works with those on parole or coming out of prison I was extremely interested in this book。 It was hard at times to read due to the heavy subject matter。 There were moments of joy and perseverance also， but there was a lot of heartbreak in and throughout this book， both with the inmates stories and Hedges detailed descriptions of prison cells and life。 This book should make anyone who reads it think twice about judging those in prison and see them for who they are， people。 I will admit that the large amount of quoted text was disinteresting at times but I do understand why the author did so。 。。。more
Barbara
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The author Chris Hedges writes about teaching a literature class for prisoners at the East Jersey State Prison。 He begins with explanations about his personal background in religious studies and his writing experience， with detailed information about the physical prison building。 The first half of the book seemed more like the author’s essay about the inequities of society， heavy with his personal opinion。 Midway through the book， his essay takes a turn toward the actual class assignment for his The author Chris Hedges writes about teaching a literature class for prisoners at the East Jersey State Prison。 He begins with explanations about his personal background in religious studies and his writing experience， with detailed information about the physical prison building。 The first half of the book seemed more like the author’s essay about the inequities of society， heavy with his personal opinion。 Midway through the book， his essay takes a turn toward the actual class assignment for his class。 They are asked to write a dramatic dialogue to ultimately create their own class drama or play。 At this point， it was more interesting to me because of my background as a teacher。 This book was provided by Net Galley as an advanced reading copy。 。。。more
Heather Munao
，
Full review in Booklist soon。I like this book a lot— especially the students， and the underlying theme of writing as redemptive and liberatory。 I liked the intertwining of scholarship and literature with the students’ work。 However， I have concerns about white saviorism and was uncomfortably aware of the implications of the men and their work being seen and presented through a white gaze。 I taught Just Mercy in AP Languge this year， and I see a lot of excerpts in here that could pair nicely with Full review in Booklist soon。I like this book a lot— especially the students， and the underlying theme of writing as redemptive and liberatory。 I liked the intertwining of scholarship and literature with the students’ work。 However， I have concerns about white saviorism and was uncomfortably aware of the implications of the men and their work being seen and presented through a white gaze。 I taught Just Mercy in AP Languge this year， and I see a lot of excerpts in here that could pair nicely with it。 。。。more
Wanda Argersinger
，
Could you walk into a maximum-security prison in America and treat the prisoners without regard for their crimes。 Chris Hedges did just that Following the rules set forth by the prisons， he took some of the toughest， most feared， prisoners and taught them to write， to read literature especially lays， and then help them use their life stories to create and produce a play based on these writings。 He allowed them to be who they are and used this fact to help them believe in themselves when no one e Could you walk into a maximum-security prison in America and treat the prisoners without regard for their crimes。 Chris Hedges did just that Following the rules set forth by the prisons， he took some of the toughest， most feared， prisoners and taught them to write， to read literature especially lays， and then help them use their life stories to create and produce a play based on these writings。 He allowed them to be who they are and used this fact to help them believe in themselves when no one else cared。 For the first time in their lives， they saw and felt that they mattered; that what they said and believed were facts they could draw on in their writings。 They played the characters in their play， which gave them strength to continue in the class and begin to change their lives。Chris Hedges may be the first person who showed them that their lives mattered。 His recounting of these classes and the prisoners who wrote， is a story worth reading。 Sometimes it only takes one person to believe in you to make a difference。 。。。more
jeremy
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incisive as always， chris hedges' new book confronts america's sadistic， racist， exploitative， counterproductive， and broken carceral state。 our class: trauma and transformation in an american prison focuses on the pulitzer prize-winning journalist （and ordained minister）'s time spent teaching inmates at east jersey state prison。 in exposing his students to the works of james baldwin， august wilson， amira baraka， miguel piñero， michele alexander （and others）， hedges found a classroom of engaged， incisive as always， chris hedges' new book confronts america's sadistic， racist， exploitative， counterproductive， and broken carceral state。 our class: trauma and transformation in an american prison focuses on the pulitzer prize-winning journalist （and ordained minister）'s time spent teaching inmates at east jersey state prison。 in exposing his students to the works of james baldwin， august wilson， amira baraka， miguel piñero， michele alexander （and others）， hedges found a classroom of engaged， bright， and vulnerable individuals eager to learn and express themselves。 with his guidance， the class sets out to write a play， a candid， often brutal account of their childhoods， their early lives， their experiences with the justice system， etc。 the play would eventually be staged at the passage theatre in trenton （in 2018） and was released last year in hardcover by haymarket books: caged。our class is a personal tale， of both hedges's time in the prison classroom and of the trials and triumphs of his students。 when writing about the penal system more generally， hedges indicts a cruel， inhuman system that has no place in a civilized society。 as he seems to do in nearly every one of his books， hedges offers a cogent， moving， and infuriating look at the decline and failure of american empire。 there are people in this room who committed crimes， but there are no criminals here today。 not that criminals do not exist。 is it not criminal to allow more than twelve million in the united states to go to bed hungry every night while amazon， which earned $11 billion in profits last year， paid no federal taxes？ in fact， in our system of corporate welfare， amazon received a $129 million tax rebate from the federal government。 is it not criminal that half of all americans live in poverty， or near poverty， while the three richest men in america， including the founder of amazon， jeff bezos， have combined fortunes worth more than the total wealth of the poorest half of americans？ is it not criminal that millions of factory jobs， which once allowed families to earn a living wage with health and retirement benefits， have been shipped to places like monterrey， mexico， where mexican workers in gm plants earn three dollars an hour without benefits？ is it not criminal that our families have been sacrificed to feed the mania for corporate profit， left to rot in violent and postindustrial wastelands such as newark and camden？ is it not criminal to harass and terrorize the poor on the streets of our cities for petty activities such as selling loose cigarettes or "obstructing pedestrian traffic，" which means standing too long on a sidewalk， while bank of america， citibank， and goldman sachs have never been held accountable for trashing the global economy， wiping out forty percent of u。s。 wealth through fraud？ is not criminal that， as poverty has gone up and crime has actually gone down， our prison population has more than doubled？ 。。。more
Susan Sanders
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ARC by NetGalley。 This book is a heavy and important read。 I was distracted by how often it quoted other authors or bodies of work - for large sections， pages even。 It did not hang together in a way that made it easy for me as a reader to follow。 It did make me care about the men in his class and see them in another dimension。
Dora Okeyo
，
Reading this book is the one thing I never thought I needed， for I always took it that a prisoner was a criminal， serving time for something they did and it serves them right。 However， reading this book and the sessions the author has with inmates on writing， reading and social issues related to the penal code in the US， it gave me more of an insight on the people behind those bars。 The people that bias， prejudice and a flawed criminal justice system failed and continues to fail and it hurt read Reading this book is the one thing I never thought I needed， for I always took it that a prisoner was a criminal， serving time for something they did and it serves them right。 However， reading this book and the sessions the author has with inmates on writing， reading and social issues related to the penal code in the US， it gave me more of an insight on the people behind those bars。 The people that bias， prejudice and a flawed criminal justice system failed and continues to fail and it hurt reading about it。Thanks Netgalley for the eARC。 。。。more
Sean Loughran
，