Book Review #13 "Incarcerated Nations"

Hey Everyone,
     This post I will be reviewing "Incarcerated Nations: A Journey to Justice in Prisons Around the World," by Baz Dreisinger. This book is available to purchase February 9, 2016, for those of you who would like to purchase a copy of this book CLICK HERE. I would rate this book four stars out of five. I chose this book to read mainly because of the subject matter of this book appealed to me. It is not something that I have read a lot about. This book is about the U.S. criminal justice system, in how it compares to criminal justice systems around the world. This book is broken down into nine chapters, each chapter describes a specific country's criminal justice system. This book delves into the history behind the U.S. criminal justice system, as well as the countries that are highlighted in this book. It talks about the author's journey in finding answers to questions that were haunting the author's mind.
     I really enjoyed this book. It was an extremely interesting and eye-opening subject. I am very satisfied that the author chose to write about prisons in the way that she did. Hope for a better system was alive throughout the book, no matter how gloomy things seemed. Actually the hopeful and positive attitude of this book is what made it so good. I think the author chose a well-rounded group of countries to discuss,  from Africa to Australia to Norway to Brazil. Each country had a different and sometimes similar attitudes in how they treat/punish citizens who break a law. There were personal stories narrated throughout the book. It was a great balance of personal stories and facts, history and statistics well mixed in together. I really was pleased with the author's unbiased, nonjudgmental and open minded take on this subject. The author's compassion was very palpable throughout this book. I love books that are written from deep within the author's soul. Her compassion and nonjudgmental stance inspired me to do the same while reading this book.
     Not only did this book discuss the different criminal justice systems around the world but presented solutions to the many issues in this system. So it doesn't just leave you hanging and saying to yourself okay great there are so many problems now how on earth is it going to be fixed? While good, logical solutions were presented, I am just not sure how realistic they are. I don't know, it is probably my fear that is stopping me from believing that things can change. They say after all how common it is to be afraid of change, and the only way to change is to overcome your fears. So for all of you who read this book, go into it prepared to face maybe some of your own fears.
     I would like to thank Netgalley, Other Press, (the publisher) and Baz Dreisinger (the author) for giving me the opportunity to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

Until the Next Page,

Jill