An Interesting Insight into Britain's D-Category Prisons

books:


	• Heaven: A Prison Diary Volume 3 (A Prison Diary) Jeffrey Archer St. Martin's Griffin, 2006 - 480 pages average customer review:based on 7 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

worth it if you read the first two

This makes more sense if you read the first two prior books. Interesting and well written and an easy read, come to mind when describing the book. It is what it is - an on going diary of prison time. The tone of the book gets a bit darker as the reins are tightned and he is forced back into a more secure population. His depression is evident as he eventually trails off in his writing and picks it up the day of his discharge. None of the books were gritty in the sense of true prison drama, but it is an interesting prospective.

It is almost comical in some aspects as I have worked in the prison system. He is gleeful at the prospect of getting his very own coffee cup when most men spend their days trying not to get stabbed. He rails at people called Lady this or Lord that and loves to name drop. It's difficult to imagine that in a prison system and therefore the unsual prospective. Interesting.

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The Best of The Three Diaries

This is the final volume of three volumes about Jeffrey Archer's Prison experience following his conviction for perjury and perverting the course of justice in 2001.

Archer gives the reader an excellent picture of what it is like to be in prison in the United Kingdom. He writes pithy descriptions of some of his colleagues, including two of them who were model prisoners only to reoffend shortly after they were released. His comments on the drug problem in prisons are almost certainly applicable to prisons here in the United States as well.

This book is easy to read, hard to put down, and does not waste words or descriptions. There is also plenty of Archer's good humor. He expresses his unhappiness at the people who turned on him and testified against him, but does not indulge in self-pity. This book is well worth reading.

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Heaven

Jeffrey Archer is one of my favourite authors and to read of his time behind bars has added a whole new dimension to his writing.He not only survived,but has gone on from where he left off,writing very readable books.
Loryn Potroz

The conclusion, very good, though a little repetitive

The final book of Archers tales in the Prison System.

I read this in 1 day... just wanted to get through it and again could not put the book down. A lot of the material and experience is the same as book 1 and 2. Though now in a Cat D prison (an open prison) he has more freedom, it does still show the drugs and money.

And of course, the press continue to try and get the scoop on him, paying other inmates to get "archer with his clothes off"

All in all, a good book. I am glad he did not do a 4th.

If you read book 1 and 2, get this to wrap up the set.

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An Interesting Insight into Britain's D-Category Prisons

I haven't actually read Archer's first two prison diaries yet but have ordered them after stumbling across this fascinating insight into daily prison life. Volume III Heaven can definitely be read as a stand alone non fiction novel or before reading the other two as it doesn't really refer to anything before Archer's arrival at North Sea Camp. Arhcer's final stage of imprisonment is in one of Britain's cushy D-category prisons, the final chapter of prisoners' lives before they are released, where there are no fences keeping prisoners in, and they have a lot more freedom and luxuries than ever before.

Archer tells the reader through his diary entries about the difference in the way he is treated at North Sea Camp in comparison to the places he was held previously. How he is being picked on by corrupt political opponents, how the media who are camped out on the doorstep for a photo of him is portraying a completely different scenario to what he endures daily. The drug problems of other prisoners and how the system works or doesn't for prisoners in North Sea Camp. Archer explains the different jobs within the prison and takes us through the daily tasks of his various job promotions including the one he refers to as heaven, hospital orderly. There are also a few pictures included in what is a fascinating insight into prison life. Obviously it is a diary by Archer so we have to assume he was well behaved inside or if he did anything wrong he certainly didn't include it. There are plenty of despicable or stupid actions from some other prisoners and the outcomes of those actions inside to keep the reader entertained though.

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reviews: page 1, 2

Heaven, Jeffrey Archer's final volume in his trilogy of prison diaries, covers the period of his transfer from a medium security prison, HMP Wayland, to his eventual release on parole in July 2003. It includes a shocking account of the traumatic time he spent in the notorious Lincoln jail and the events that led to his incarceration there, and also shines a harsh light on a system that is close to its breaking point. Told with humor, compassion, and honesty, the diary closes with a thought-provoking manifesto that will be applauded by reform advocates and the prison population alike.

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