Chronicles of San Quentin: The Biography of a Prison

First published in 1961, writing Chronicles of San Quentin was first suggested to Kenneth Lamott during a spell as a teacher at that California prison in the 1950's.
The book not only chronicles the history and highlights of one of America's most famous penitentiaries, but it also reflects the changes in prisons in the U.S. over the last 100 years. Calmly informing us that there were over 4,000 murders in California between 1849-1855, Lamott quickly justifies the terrible need the state ha...