Breakfast at Bronzefield ~Book Review~

Breakfast at Bronzefield

By: Sophie Campbell

Cleanliness (See “About” for scale): 3/5 (Content to consider: Cursing, mentions of rape, mentions of sexual assault, and violence)

4 Stars

Breakfast at Bronzefield is a nonfiction, autobiographical recounting of Sophie Campbell’s experience in the UK’s female prison system. All told from her perspective, this book reads a bit like a diary – giving the reader a very unique glimpse into prison life.

As someone who is pursuing a degree in criminology, Sophie’s book was extremely fascinating! She had a very different perspective than you see in a lot of prison memoirs, and she also included a wonderful amount of statistics about the UK criminal justice system to back up her points. Not only does Breakfast at Bronzefield give the reader a series of interesting stories about life in prison, it also advocates for the right of female prisoners, points out flaws in the system, touches on racism and sexism, and gives educated suggestions on how to make a positive change to reduce recidivism and improve post-prison life.

The only part of this book that got on my nerves a little was the attitude of the author during the middle of her incarceration. She seemed to have the mindset that she was entitled to do whatever she wanted, which included breaking the rules and then villainizing almost every single worker she encountered within the criminal justice system. It makes sense given the circumstances that she would feel hostile toward the guards and such, but even her own account showed that many of them were simply trying to do their job. Sophie demonstrates well her point that people become different in prison and do things they never would out in the “real world.” She provided a good example of how not to act if you become incarcerated, and how the environment cultivates a certain type of mindset.

Overall, this book is very enlightening and well-written. I definitely recommend it to anyone who wants to understand the impact of incarceration – especially on black, female inmates. Remember: don’t believe everything you see on TV.

~I was sent a free copy of this book by the author for an honest review~