Fish: A Memoir of a Boy in a Man's Prison
 

Fish: A Memoir of a Boy in a Man's Prison

by T.J. Parsell


When seventeen-year-old T.J. Parsell held up the local Photo Mat with a toy gun, he was sentenced to four and a half to fifteen years in prison. The first night of his term, four older inmates drugged Parsell and took turns raping him. When they were through, they flipped a coin to decide who would "own" him. Forced to remain silent about his rape by a convict code among inmates (one in... (read more)

Top tags: penal systemautobiography/memoirbrutalityexploitationgay (all tags)

 

Member Reviews

  • Janitza
    • Rated 4 stars

    An interesting story about what really happens behind prison bars. As a young man, Parsell is thrust into the VERY adult world of a maximum security prison and soon begins to experience what is usually considered prison folklore.
    While the story is well written, it seems to be late in it's revelation. Parsell seems to believe that he is blowing the lid off of some huge secret that is kept behind bars, but in truth, is actually well-known to exist and almost expected as an inevitability of prison life, at least in today's society.
    However, reading the details of these prison interactions between inmates are gut-wrenching at times.
    Overall, the book was an interesting read because of Parsell's perspective as a teenage white male in this prison environment.

    Janitza wrote this review Wednesday, March 12 2008. ( reply | permalink )
  • hendecam
    • Rated 5 stars

    Fish: A Memoir of a Boy in a Man's Prison by T.J. Parsell opens a portal into life behind bars. At the age of 17, Parsell lands in prison after attempting to rob a small photo store with a toy gun. He's drugged and raped by multiple men not long after entering prison. Parsell quickly learns how to survive in this new, constantly threatening environment. Parts of the book are definitely hard to read (as in, you can't believe what some people experience behind bars). Highly recommended.

    hendecam wrote this review Wednesday, August 22 2007. ( reply | permalink )
  • Nikki
    • Rated 3 stars

    A heartbreaking story that shows the cruelty in our prison system.

    Nikki wrote this review Sunday, June 3 2007. ( reply | permalink )
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