James Phelps (2)

Goulburn Jail is the toughest jail in Australia and Australian journalist and author James Phelps did a thorough job of convincing this reader that it's a hell on earth in Australia's Most Murderous Prison - Behind the Walls of Goulburn Jail.

Gaining unprecedented access to prison staff (some of whom asked to remain anonymous), Phelps has lifted the lid on racial clustering, murder, rape, the rampant drug trade and despicable behaviour that goes on inside the country's toughest prison.

I was show more surprised by the lengths some visitors and guards will go to in order to smuggle contraband into the prison, and that efforts to stop them are largely thwarted by the fierce determination of the prisoners to get what they want. Despite being a little 'grossed out' at times, I was equally fascinated to learn the gory details and in doing so, now understand just what the prison system is up against. It really does seem like a losing battle in some regards.

Phelps sometimes employed a storytelling narrative to make the facts come alive - in a writing style known as narrative nonfiction - but there didn't seem to be a pattern to this and so it felt a little jarring to me at times.

Having said that, I have a new found respect for some of the guards that keep us safe from these criminals and recommend Australia's Most Murderous Prison - Behind the Walls of Goulburn Jail for readers of true crime or those with an interest in Australian crime and the justice system. show less

A book where the title is utterly unambiguous, AUSTRALIA'S MOST MURDEROUS PRISON is about Goulburn Jail. It refers to events in the jail as much as many of it's inmates crimes. It is also provides a brief history of the construction, background and management of the jail, where the worst of NSW inmates invariably end up.

Written in a light style that initially might seem almost irreverent, it works incredibly well when it comes to relating many of the events that occur within the jail, and in show more particular when discussing the "activities" of some of the more notorious prisoners held within.

At no stage does Phelps attempt to justify many of the extreme measures taken within the jail, rather he draws a series of quite graphic pictures of the worst of events - the race wars, the inmate on inmate violence (physical and sexual) and the consequences of riots from prisoner conditions through to the careers of jail wardens. This allows the reader to draw their own conclusions about the racial clustering and the construction and running of the notorious Supermax area.

Many true crime books tend to concentrate on a particular case, or connected cases and the events leading up to trial / verdict, but AUSTRALIA'S MOST MURDEROUS PRISON is looking mostly at the incarceration of offenders, particularly those that end up in the end of the line jail at Goulburn. The concentration on particular offenders is not so much about what they have done, but rather what jail time is doing to them, how they ended up in Goulburn and how they cope with it.

Because this is a book about a jail it jumps around from offenders, to in jail offence, from riot to warden's viewpoint, from anecdotes to analysis. AUSTRALIA'S MOST MURDEROUS PRISON is a fascinating book, written in a very readable style.

http://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/review-australias-most-murderous-prison-b... show less

The follow up to a fascinating book Australia's Most Murderous Prison, AUSTRALIA'S TOUGHEST PRISONS: INMATES tells the story of a number of people in prison - for a change not all of the usual role-call of participants that show up in these sorts of books. The definition of "toughest" here is something that's really up to the reader's perception - it could mean hardest to cope with, or most able to cope with dreadful circumstances.

There's something very off-putting about the opening to this show more book describing the behaviour of Martin Bryant. Perpetrator of one of Australia's horrifying massacres, Bryant is a rather pathetic character in jail, and you can't help wondering if his trading sexual favours for protection or chocolate is a great way to start a book like this - feeling as it does salacious or designed to shock on purpose.

Going from that story to those of some well-known prisoners, like John Killick who escaped from Silverwater in a stolen helicopter, and less well known, like the rugby player who became a drug mule, and even the founding members of Brothers 4 Life provides the author with an opportunity to explore some of the reasons why or even how repeat offenders or particularly violent individuals end up where they do. The consistency across these stories is variable though - obviously some have the benefit of subjects who were more forthcoming or there is more general information about the cases involved.

Because it is a considerably more personal telling than in the earlier book, TOUGHEST PRISON INMATES is a more confronting read. There are aspects that are of historical interest and there is some new information about why prisoners like Killick, for example, spent so many years in jail and why escape was seen as a viable option. There's also some interest in gangs, many of whom are particularly NSW centric and therefore not so well known in other states, or at least for this reader.

Written with the same engaging style as the earlier book, there's often a sense of connection between the author and some of the prisoners he talks to. There's certainly some glimpses behind the tough exterior to the thinking behind crimes and criminal lives and those sections of AUSTRALIA'S TOUGHEST PRISONS: INMATES were worthwhile and very interesting. Overall, sadly, this reader enjoyed this slightly less than the earlier book. There is some sort of weird sense of personal exploitation which made this harder to fathom, and then there's the sections on Martin Bryant, which flat out didn't contribute a thing that this reader needed to know.

https://www.austcrimefiction.org/review/review-australias-toughest-prisons-inmat... show less

Australian author James Phelps takes a look at some of the most violent and notorious female prisoners behind bars in Green Is The New Black: Inside Australia's Hardest Women's Jails.

Phelps doesn't hold back describing the lives of the inmates so this isn't for readers with a weak stomach. Occasionally the writing appeared salacious and the shock factor swiftly wore off for me. I soon became disgusted by the practices of the inmates as well as the stories and encounters re-told in this show more book.

Particular stories felt sensationalised and despite some of the well-known prisoners and infamous true crimes mentioned, I lost interest early on.

Just as he did in Australia's Most Murderous Prison - Behind the Walls of Goulburn Jail, Phelps occasionally inserted a narrative nonfiction style of writing, which seemed to fictionalise an inmate's experience as if it was taking place right now. There was no consistency to these changes in writing style, which left these sections oddly juxtaposed with the standard non fiction delivery.

Only recommended for hard core true crime fans with an interest in Australian prison life for female inmates. I'm sure there are better books out there for those wanting to read about the individual inmates mentioned. show less