As someone who just started learning about this topic, I would say that this is a good introduction to the prison abolition movement.

Most of the book is focused on presenting the ways in which the modern prison system is deeply flawed and ineffective. Even though historically imprisonment was never an effective way to reduce crime, its original framing as a way of reforming prisoners has been lost almost entirely, and nowadays prison is seen mostly as a tool for punishment. In this work, Davis prompts us to ask ourselves this question: is depriving other people of freedom, community, family and the opportunity for intellectual development really the best way to prevent them from committing crime? Or are prisons a tool for punishing, isolating and abusing people who, we think, don't deserve a place in society?

This book also explores the historical evolution of racist oppression in the US. I found the section on the shift from slavery into imprisonment particularly interesting, and as someone who isn't from the US, I also learned more about the timeline of the abolition of slavery and what came after, as well as about some of the horrific practices that were common during slavery and that ended up carrying over into prison life.

As per what I think would have made this a five-star read, I wish Davis had also explored the connection between capitalism and the need for prisons and other institutions that limit people’s freedom in search of social control. She did mention this connection, and the section about the privatisation of the prison industrial complex went into the practical implications of it, but I would have also liked for the author to talk about this as more of an essential, overarching factor linking different forms of oppression. An extra chapter on this topic would have been great.

I also wish the last section on the alternatives to our current system of crime and punishment would have been more fleshed out. I really liked what the author said about not trying to replace the current system with a one-to-one solution, but rather with an ecosystem of solutions addressing the different social problems that fuel the current prison system. However, very few examples were provided, and although the concept of restorative justice (which was new for me) was mentioned, not much information on it was provided other than a definition and one example.

As I said at the start of the review, I still think this is a good introduction to the topic with a very necessary focus on the racist underpinnings of the prison system. I can recommend this to anyone who wants to start learning about prison abolition, and I’m glad I read it. After reading this I now know which aspects of prison abolition I would like to explore more in depth, and I am more familiar with what the movement stands for and proposes.