A Deputy Warden's Reflections on Prison Work

This book is a picture of prison life from the inside. It illustrates prison life as, at turns, exciting, surprising, distressing and, often, amusing. Each day is different, and anyone who walks through a prison gate had better be alert. It tells of the small human dramas that play out daily among staff, prisoners, and others who enter this gated world. It calls the reader to see that justice begins by seeing each person, staff or prisoner, as an individual with his or her own story. The passion of the author is to portray prison life as continuous with life in broader society. In prisons, we meet the same cast of characters, the same temptations, the same dangers, and the same rewards as on the outside. Rather than regarding prisons as separate worlds, we should regard them as extensions of the society in which we live.
This is important because there is a continuous flow between prisons and the broader society. Those who go to prison usually return to society. Understanding how prisons work will help us as we consider how to reintegrate former prisoners into our society. As the author argues, this is difficult but important work.


""Here is a prison warden's official story about what it is like . . . deal[ing] constructively with every sort of prisoner in the state correctional system . . . Adria Libolt's story is an engaging inside look at what that means, how that goes, what can be done, and how this one lithesome lady did it for decades with grace and good humor. This narrative . . . is a rewarding surprise that restores one's faith in humankind.""
--J. Harold Ellens
Founding editor of The Journal of Psychology and Christianity
Author of Honest Faith for Our Time

""Adria [Libolt] . . . has been able to . . . listen to inmates, prison employees and family members . . . Each portrayal in this book reveals some truths that could only be discovered and described by someone with [Libolt's] insights and writing ability . . . The United States has a huge prison population, much larger in proportion than other nations. We need to understand the . . . factors contributing to this situation. [Libolt] makes a significant contribution to our learning about the penal system.""
--Lois A. Bader
Executive director, Capital Area Literacy Coalition
Author of Bader Reading and Language Inventory

""An intelligent, perceptive, and honest rendering of prisons and prisoners that will promote a more objective and clear understanding of the criminal justice system and encourage a more humane society. Each gripping chapter blends and compares criminal elements with Ms. Libolt's truthful observations about her own life and contributions. The general public and criminal justice employees and students should read this.""
--Tekla Dennison Miller
Former Michigan warden
Author of The Warden Wore Pink

""Adria Libolt tells compassionate, tough stories about young people in reform schools and adults in maximum-security prisons. She layers each story with nuance, irony, and breadth to show why she feels it is a thin line between a prisoner and the rest of us. Even as she acknowledges the dangers, she feels safer in prison than outside. This book will complicate your perspective on prisoners and the prison system.""

--Linda R. Peckham
Author of The Pocket Hotline for Writers

""Adria Libolt offers an insightful, compelling perspective on the myriad of issues surrounding our country's corrections systems. This 'inside' look at prison life would be extremely valuable to anyone in a position like mine that requires us to not only take a critical, thoughtful look at what's happening in our corrections system, but to make policy decisions that will have far-reaching conseq