Chronicles the life of Elaine Bartlett, a woman who spent sixteen years in prison for selling cocaine, tracing her steps as she is released from prison and tries to reconstruct her life.

"Stigma, shame and hardship---this is the lot shared by families whose young men have been swept into prison. Braman reveals the devastating toll mass incarceration takes on the parents, partners, and children left behind." -Katherine S. Newman "Doing Time on the Outside brings to life in a compelling way the human drama, and tragedy, of our incarceration policies. Donald Braman documents the profound economic and social consequences of the American policy of massive imprisonment of young African American males. He shows us the link between the broad-scale policy changes of recent decades and the isolation and stigma that these bring to family members who have a loved one in prison. If we want to understand fully the impact of current criminal justice policies, this book should be required reading." -Mark Mauer, Assistant Director, The Sentencing Project "Through compelling stories and thoughtful analysis, this book describes how our nation's punishment policies have caused incalculable damage to the fabric of family and community life. Anyone concerned about the future of urban America should read this book." -Jeremy Travis, The Urban Institute In the tradition of Elijah Anderson's Code of the Street and Katherine Newman's No Shame in My Game, this startling new ethnography by Donald Braman uncovers the other side of the incarceration saga: the little-told story of the effects of imprisonment on the prisoners' families. Since 1970 the incarceration rate in the United States has more than tripled, and in many cities-urban centers such as Washington, D.C.-it has increased over five-fold. Today, one out of every ten adult black men in the District is in prison and three out of every four can expect to spend some time behind bars. But the numbers don't reveal what it's like for the children, wives, and parents of prisoners, or the subtle and not-so-subtle effects mass incarceration is having on life in the inner city. Author Donald Braman shows that those doing time on the inside are having a ripple effect on the outside-reaching deep into the family and community life of urban America. Braman gives us the personal stories of what happens to the families and communities that prisoners are taken from and return to. Carefully documenting the effects of incarceration on the material and emotional lives of families, this groundbreaking ethnography reveals how criminal justice policies are furthering rather than abating the problem of social disorder. Braman also delivers a number of genuinely new arguments. Among these is the compelling assertion that incarceration is holding offenders unaccountable to victims, communities, and families. The author gives the first detailed account of incarceration's corrosive effect on social capital in the inner city and describes in poignant detail how the stigma of prison pits family and community members against one another. Drawing on a series of powerful family portraits supported by extensive empirical data, Braman shines a light on the darker side of a system that is failing the very families and communities it seeks to protect.

Popular Out magazine columnist Michelangelo Signorile investigates the hot-button issues confronting gay men today. "Exhaustively researched, surpassingly perceptive." --New York magazine "Life Outside bravely advances a critique of the attitudes and ideologies that have shaped the gay 'scene' and merits the attention of a broad audience for its courage and informativeness." --New York Times Book Review "A stunning expose. Gay men should be handed three things when they come out of the closet: a box of condoms, a videocassette of George Cukor's The Women, and a copy of Life Outside." --The Advocate Michelangelo Signorile galvanized a generation of lesbians and gay men when he took on the "closets of power" in his 1992 classic Queer in America. Now, in Life Outside, he offers an expose of what he calls the "cult of masculinity" within contemporary gay male culture, while finding hope and renewal in other aspects of gay life. He reveals the origins of the current obsession in much of the gay community with an impossible physical ideal and explores the malevolent commercialization of gay sex. Life Outside also identifies another, more positive phenomenon in the gay male world. With the expansion of the gay movement, with more gays coming out--and remaining--in suburban, small-town, and rural America, the urban "scene" is no longer setting the standard for what it is to be gay in America. With the "deghettoization" and "deurbanization" of homosexuality, we find men who challenge long-held assumptions about being gay, relationships, and coping with growing older. With first-person accounts from men who are moving into midlife with pride and vitality, Signorile points the way for all gay men to face the passages of life with a new maturity.

His fans have spoken, but despite their requests, Peter Davison has gone ahead and written his autobiography anyway. It wasn’t the book they tried to stop – it was more like the book they didn’t want him to start. An aspiring singer-songwriter, once dubbed Woking’s answer to Bob Dylan (by his mum, who once heard a Bob Dylan song), Peter actually penned a hit for Dave Clark but soon swapped a life on the pub circuit to tread the boards. From colonial roots – his dad was Guyanese and his mother was born in India – the family settled in Surrey where Peter’s academic achievements were unspectacular – he even managed to fail CSE woodwork, eliciting a lament from his astonished teacher (‘All you have to do is recognise wood!’). Despite this, Peter has secured his place in science fiction history, becoming the fifth Doctor Who, although he nearly turned down the role. The Time Lord connection continued with the marriage of his daughter Georgia to Dr Who number ten, David Tennant. The artist formerly known as Peter Malcolm Gordon Moffett has starred in a number of television series including Love for Lydia, A Very Peculiar Practice, At Home with the Braithwaites and The Last Detective and became a national treasure for having his arm up a cow in his role as Tristan Farnon in All Creatures Great and Small. He was also in a Michael Winner movie... He made his first stage appearance with an amateur dramatic company, but The Byfleet Players’ loss was the West End’s gain as he now has a number of musicals to his name, including Legally Blonde, Chicago and Spamalot. Most recently he starred in the box office record-breaking Gypsy where he rubbed shoulders backstage with Dames Meryl Streep, Maggie Smith and Judi Dench – all asking him for directions to Imelda Staunton’s dressing room. One thing is for sure: of all the British screen and stage actors of the last fifty years, Peter Davison is certainly one of them and, within these pages, intrepid readers will at last have the dubious honour of sharing in his life and times – as he despairs over whether there truly ever can be life outside the box.

There are more people incarcerated in the world today than at any other time in history. Every year millions of prisoners are released back into society after having completed their sentences, with the majority of them returning to prison within just a short time after their release. The Dedicated Ex-Prisoner's Guide to Life and Success on the Outside is a 10-rule guidebook for the ex-prisoner who is determined to be successful once released and offers invaluable information on how to overcome the odds of returning to prison. If followed, the advice and suggestions offered in this guide will prove very helpful to all ex-prisoners who are serious about getting out of prison and not ever going back.

Hulk Hogan, born Terry Bollea, burst onto the professional wrestling scene in the late seventies and went on to become a world wrestling champion many times over. From humble beginnings, this giant of a man escaped a pre-ordained life of dock and construction work in Port Tampa, Florida, to become one of the most recognizable celebrities on the planet. He did it through sheer will, grit, determination, and a drive to always go over the top and do more than what others thought possible. From the outside, his story was one of a charmed life—he was at the top of his career, had a wonderful and loving family, and a lifelong fan base who worshiped him. Of course he had his up and downs—including hints of steroid abuse and his falling out with WWE and Vince McMahon—but two years tested Hogan more than any other in his lifetime. In 2007, while riding the massive success of his VH1 reality show, Hogan Knows Best, his son Nick was involved in a tragic car accident that left his best friend in critical condition. Then Linda, his wife, left him after 23 years of marriage, his beloved daughter Brooke blamed him for the breakup, and his son went to jail. The tabloid media had a field day. When unflattering jailhouse conversations between him and his son were released to the press the tabloids were in a frenzy. The sudden turmoil and tragedy surrounding Hogan took its toll. He fell into a deep depression, seeing no way out, until one fateful phone call. In My Life Outside the Ring, Hogan will unabashedly recount these events, revealing how his newfound clarity steadied him during the most difficult match of his life—and how he emerged from the battle feeling stronger than ever before. I was right there leaning on the side of the car with my hands when I finally saw Nick—my only son—folded up like an accordion with his head down by the gas pedal. "Nick!" I yelled. I could see he was alive. He turned his head, he stuck his hand out, and gave me a thumbs-up. For a second I was relieved. Then the chaos set in. The noise of engines. Sirens. A saw. Para - medics pulling John from the passenger seat. So much blood. I can't even describe to you how panicked I was. The police and firefighters surrounding us seemed panicked, too. The firefighters started cutting the side of the car open to try to get Nick out, and I'm still standing right there when I hear my boy screaming, "No, no, no, stop! Stop! You're gonna cut my legs off. Dad! Just unbuckle the seatbelt. I can get out!" So I reach in and I push the button on his seat belt, and Nick just crawls right out. His wrist was broken. His ribs were cracked. None of that mattered. He was gonna be okay. But not John. John wasn't moving. —from MY LIFE OUTSIDE THE RING

Step Into Wonder Has your breath ever caught at the sight of a sunset? Have you ever stopped in your tracks to listen to a birdsong? When was the last time you stood in awe of the world around you? If it’s been so long you can’t remember, living life at a sprint might be leaving you nature blind. If you’re feeling stressed, disconnected from God, and disenchanted with life, this book will help you find solace for your scattered soul. Through storytelling, practical application, and reflective questions, Laurie Kehler invites you on a journey of discovery to… escape the crazy and reset your spiritual compass to explore pathways of peace seek connections with nature and others—starting in your own backyard recognize God’s work in creation and in your life as you live in expectation of his promises Are you ready to set out on a new kind of adventure? Consider this your trail guide for uncovering God’s signposts in the world and revealing his fingerprints on your life.