- Paperback: 208 pages
- Publisher: Minotaur Books; First Edition edition (Nov 4 2000)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0312267118
- ISBN-13: 978-0312267117
- Product Dimensions: 21.1 x 14.1 x 1.3 cm
- Shipping Weight: 249 g
- Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: #480,653 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Details |
Product Description
Review
“Edward Bunker is among the tiny band of American prisoner-writers whose work possesses integrity, craftsmanship, and moral passion...an artist with a unique and compelling voice.”--William Styron
“Edward Bunker writes about the netherworld of society’s outcasts with a passion and insight that comes from having lived life close to the bone.”--The Los Angeles Times
“Mr. Bunker has written a raw, unromantic, naturalistic crime drama more lurid than anything the noiresque Chandlers or Hammetts ever dreamed up.”--The New York Times on Dog Eat Dog
Book Description
The Animal Factory goes deep into San Quentin, a world of violence and paranoia, where territory and status are ever-changing and possibly fatal commodities. Ron Decker is a newbie, a drug dealer whose shot at a short two-year stint in the can is threatened from inside and outside. He's got to keep a spotless record or it's ten to life. But at San Quentin, no man can steer clear of the Brotherhoods, the race wars, the relentlessness. It soon becomes clear that some inmates are more equal than others; Earl Copen is one of them, an old-timer who has learned not just to survive but to thrive behind bars. Not much can surprise him-but the bond he forms with Ron startles them both; it's a true education of a felon.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Dawn pushed a faint line of yellow on the city's low skyline when the prisoners, nearly five hundred of them, were herded from the jail's sallyport to the parking lot. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Dawn pushed a faint line of yellow on the city's low skyline when the prisoners, nearly five hundred of them, were herded from the jail's sallyport to the parking lot. Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Customer Reviews
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Most helpful customer reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
bringing it all back,
By
This review is from: The Animal Factory: A Novel (Paperback)
Like edward Bunker I've spent time in prison for armed robbery and i'm here to tell you that no one has been able to capture the boredom, frustration and quicksilver outbursts of violence that characterize prison better. He is simply the greatest "crime" writer ever. He's been there. He's done it. A fiercly determined and talented man, Edward Bunker is an inspiration to me.
3.0 out of 5 stars
A good book that could've been great,
By Don Sager (Madison, WI) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Animal Factory: A Novel (Paperback)
Few writers can describe more effectively the horrors of prison - the Animal Factories that turn minor offenders into hardened criminals and murderers - than Edward Bunker. This is the first and only of his books that takes place entirely inside the walls of a prison. I expected more.Bunker's weakness has always been his dialogue. "The Animal Factory" features his worst attempts at writing dialogue. His descriptions of prison life are vivid and real. The words he forces into his character's mouths bring the flow of the narrative to a screeching halt. This is particuarly pronounced in the relationship between the new arrival - a young man who has been sentenced on a drug charge - and the hardened convict who befriends him, a relationship that doesn't ring true. "The Animal Factory" is not without its merits. As we see the young convict, Ron, change his values and actions in order to survive, it's hard not to view prison as anything but a another phase in the making of a career convict. Bunker effectively portrays prison as a breeding ground for a more violent, desperate brand of criminal. Unfortunately, the weaknesses of this book outweigh the merits. For readers who have heard of Bunker but have not yet read him, I wouldn't recommend "The Animal Factory" as a starting point. Try "Little Boy Blue" - Bunker's best work - instead.
3.0 out of 5 stars
A good book,
By Sean Logsdon (Lansing, Michigan United States) - See all my reviews
This review is from: The Animal Factory: A Novel (Paperback)
Everyone,This is a good book. However, I expected a little more from it. When I bought this book I was expecting to see a real look at prison society and life. It was a little too politically correct for me. I was expecting a gritty California prison novel, but I was greeted with a look at prison from the eyes of what seemed to be a middle class author and not a convict. It just didn't seem all that real. It seemed like I could have thought up the ideas myself. But, it was a really great read and I will buy more Edward Bunker books. His writing is addictive(I finished the book in less than 2 days), and I really want to read another to see how different or similar it will be. I would recomed this book for anyone who enjoys crime novels or prison novels, but I will read another one of Bunker's books before I tell people that he is worth reading more than once.
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