Surely the great American prison novel – Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
Life in prison is the subject of Braly's 1967 classic, now back in print with an introduction by Jonathan Lethem. Braly, who wrote the book while doing time in San Quentin, has an uncommon ear for the rhythms of big house speech. The expertly drawn ensemble cast and institutional insight may remind readers of
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest–Braly does for prisons what Kesey did for the insane asylum. –
Publishers Weekly
A handful of authors have portrayed the human condition of prison life with the indelible stamp of authenticity–Dostoevski, Alexander Solzhenitisyn, Brendan Behan, and Genet are among them. Now in the same genre comes Malcolm Braly's
On the Yard...His eye is true and his writing faultless. –
The Times (London)