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Review: Prelude to Prison
![Prelude to Prison: Student Perspectives on School Suspension (Syracuse Studies on Peace and Conflict Resolution) - Marsha Weissman](http://booklikes.com/photo/max/200/300/upload/books/44/37/265c27df2128fdbc0d789903b1b27ba6.jpg)
Prelude to Prison is a study of the effect that the criminalization of our schools has on the future of the attending students. Students are not just being punished for offenses thought of as criminal, but are also being suspended, arrested, and/or brought in front of judges (for suspension hearings) for "offenses" such as swearing, snapping bras, or throwing tantrums.
The author spends a lot of time at the beginning of the book looking at the evolution of our prison systems and how more and more people are being funneled into jail/prison, especially compared to the 1960s and 1970s. About 15% of the way into the book, we are first introduced to the "meat" of this book - how the current punishments in school change the perception and future of the involved students. The book continues in this vein for a while while giving us case examples from students who were involved in Out of School Suspensions or Alternative Schools, as well as showcasing the security measures used in schools compared to alternative schools and even prisons.
While I found this book very interesting, I found that the almost constant citations disrupted the flow or the book. I also found that due to how the author structured the book due to the way it was sectioned: explaining the school systems, the suspension process, backstories, alternative schools, etc. There is a lot of overlap between sections which led to the same information being given, though sometimes re-worded.
Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.