OZ: Behind These Walls: The Journal of Augustus Hill

I loved this book. I am a fan of Oz but not a huge fan. The book gave a strong voice to the show and I loved that way the diary of Augustus Hill illuminated the episodes and the shows without being a plain episode guide. It was well written and absorbing. I thought it was quite entertaining and led me to understand better. There are also non-fiction excerpts from books, newspaper articles, etc. which illuminate how the prison system in America functions. Good book. A good read.

I'm currently reading the book. It's good so far, but a lot WAS left out b-c it's only from Augustus' point of view. A lot of good stuff is missing. It's interesting seeing things from Augustus' view. It's good and I am able to understand better what Augustus means b-c I watched all 6 seasons.

With this book you enter the mind of Augustus Hill, a wheel chair bound inmate who is also the narrator. It clearly depicts life in a prison. OZ: Behind These Walls: Journal of Augustus Hill lets you become part of an experimental lab inside Oswald State Correctional Facility known as Emerald City. It is an accurate description of what goes on behind jail bars from rape to sex to murder and drugs. You will truly feel like you are amidst the inmates. It is written in such a way that you "get to know" each character. Everything from what they did to get into Emerald City to the day-by-day trials and tribulations that they face on a day-to-day basis. When something happens to one of the characters you feel almost as if it happened to someone in your family. Leo Glynn is the warden at Oswald State and Timothy McManus runs and created Emerald City. They worked together because they wanted to make a better living environment for prisoners who had capabilities of rehabilitation. Sister Peter Marie is the psychologist that works with Father Ray Mukada to help rehabilitate the inmates. Gloria Nathan is the doctor for the inmates and creates jobs for them so they are doing something positive with their time. The best emotion depicted in this book is FEAR. Fear of living, fear of dying, and fear of fear itself. Augustus explains this through his eyes with each word he writes. As a wish he asks to have this book published so people can see what goes on behind the walls of a prison. I enjoyed this book because of how detailed it was and how well it was written. I didn't get the chance to watch the show on HBO so it was a privilege to read about it and imagine it in my own way. This book also gives out interesting facts about court cases and prisons that a lot of people wouldn't know about. OZ: Behind These Walls will keep you wanting more to the point you will not want to put this book down. I recommend this book to anyone who enjoys reading about prisons or prisoners. There is not another book like this and I think publishing this book made a great way to remember the show and keep its memory alive.