Teach the Free Man by Peter Nathaniel Malae
Synopsis:
The twelve stories in Teach the Free Man mark the impressive debut of Peter Nathaniel Malae. The subject of incarceration thematically links the stories, yet their range extends beyond the prison’s barbed wire and iron bars. Avoiding sensationalism, Malae exposes the heart and soul in those dark, seemingly inaccessible corridors of the human experience.
The stories, often raw and startlingly honest, are distinguished by the colloquial voices of California’s prison inmates. Despite physical and cultural isolation, they confront dilemmas with which we all can identify: the choice to show courage against peer pressure; the search for individual rights within a bureaucracy; and the desperate desire for honor in the face of great sacrifice. These stories present polished and poetic examples of finding something redemptive in the least among us.
The book’s epigraph by W. H. Auden, from which the book takes its title, exemplifies the spirit of these dynamic stories:
In the deserts of the heart
Let the healing fountain start.
In the prison of his days
Teach the free man how to praise.
“Peter Nathaniel Malae is the real deal. He's like a young Nelson Algren or Richard Wright, one of those writers who can hit with both hands. And his book is more than an auspicious debut; it's as good a collection of stories as I've read in years.”
- Russell Banks
“Inmates, their families, parolees, and prison workers are the subjects of this gritty, compelling collection that reveals a parallel world most readers are fortunate to have avoided encountering. It puts a human face on violence, hardship, and suffering in the name of justice, making them that much harder to ignore.”
- The Story Prize
“The stories...are the work of a talented author who deserves a wide audience.... (A)s good fiction must, they broaden our understanding of what it is to be human.”
- Rain Taxi
Topics/Categories:
Avenal State Penitentiary, California, California Men's Colony, Parolees, Prison, San Quentin
Type of Work:
Publishers:
Awards:
2007 Story Prize Notable Book 2008 Glasgow Prize for Emerging Writers Finalist 2008 New York Public Library's Young Lions Award Finalist
Original Publish Date:
04/01/2007
ISBNs:
0804010994
Formats:
Hardcover Paperback
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