Lockdown America: Police and Prisons in the Age of Crisis

“The story no one wants to hear: The rise of the Dow has been accompanied by the lock down of the penitentiary state. A chilling book.” — Stephen Duncombe, author of Notes from Underground

Parenti’s exhaustively documented text deserves a full hearing from anyone serious about ending the often horrific realities of the criminal justice system. — Washington Post Book World

Lockdown America is a fast read, angry and compelling. — Philadelphia City Paper

[Parenti’s] are flames of light not heat. He makes complete sense. — San Diego Union Tribune

This dark, unflinching look at what our nation has become . . . cannot fail to generate serious thought about issues we prefer to lock away in darkness.— Christian Science Monitor

Terrifying, informative and gripping. — New York Press

Parenti’s debunking of alternative explanations for the rise in incarceration is forceful and compelling. — The American Prospect

Liberals will find that it confirms their worst fears about economic and social reform. It should be essential reading for those in law enforcement and politics in Britain who are attracted by the rhetoric of zero tolerance. — Times Literary Supplement

Lockdown America deserves to be read by all sides of the political debate. — Village Voice

The book is in the best tradition of investigative journalism, paced like a fine novel, it carries the authority of meticulous academic research. — The Independent