Libraries In Prisons, Vol. 15 Book

Coyle offers a brief history of prison libraries in the U.S. before concluding the book with his proposals for prison library purpose and function. Eschewing the public library as template, he proposes a "change-based" model similar to those implemented in earlier prison libraries (in which libraries where often tied to education and reform). Surprisingly, he does not establish "change-based" libraries in a way that validates or specifically references these earlier models - the only tangible link is in his proposal that prison libraries be specifically removed from other organizations within the institution (such as schools). The historical overview is useful for understanding "trends" in prison librarianship, but Coyle's analysis leaves much to be desired. He fails to address the social aspects that surround incarceration - such as low literacy rates and their systemic origin, and, although he seems to ascribe to the idea that reading is like eating (and some foods as "better" than others), an idea popularly held in early American public librarianship, he still draws a line between the viability and usefulness of popular fiction in prison libraries. He goes so far as to propose that popular and serial fiction not fall under the purview of the prison library, instead, it should be offered through commissary and through prisoner's personal contacts.