Words No Bars Can Hold: Literacy Learning in Prison

Deborah Appleman

Jun 2019 · Highbridge Audio · Narrated by Virginia Wolf

About this audiobook

Incarcerated bodies, liberated minds: a narrative of literacy education behind bars. Words No Bars Can Hold provides a rare glimpse into literacy learning under the most dehumanizing conditions. Deborah Appleman chronicles her work teaching college-level classes at a high-security prison for men, most of whom are serving life sentences. Through narrative, poetry, memoir, and fiction, the students in Appleman's classes attempt to write themselves back into a society that has erased their lived histories. The students' work, through which they probe and develop their identities as readers and writers, illuminates the transformative power of literacy. Appleman argues for the importance of educating the incarcerated, and explores ways to interrupt the increasingly common journey from urban schools to our nation's prisons. From the sobering endpoint of what scholars have called the "school to prison pipeline," she draws insight from the narratives and experiences of those who have traveled it.

About the author

Deborah Appleman lives in Minnesota and is the Hollis L. Caswell Professor of Educational Studies and director of the summer writing program at Carleton College. Since 2007, she has taught language, literature, and creative writing courses at a high-security prison for men in the upper Midwest.

Virginia Wolf is a Connecticut-based actress and radio personality. In addition to appearing on stage throughout the state, she hosts a weekly radio show on arts and entertainment and is founder of Herstory Theater.