A Place to Stand

Jimmy Santiago Baca

Dec 2007 · Open Road + Grove/Atlantic

About this eBook

The Pushcart Prize–winning poet’s memoir of his criminal youth and years in prison: a “brave and heartbreaking” tale of triumph over brutal adversity (The Nation).
 
Jimmy Santiago Baca’s “astonishing narrative” of his life before, during, and immediately after the years he spent in the maximum-security prison garnered tremendous critical acclaim. An important chronicle that “affirms the triumph of the human spirit,” it went on to win the prestigious 2001 International Prize (Arizona Daily Star).
 
Long considered one of the best poets in America today, Baca was illiterate at the age of twenty-one when he was sentenced to five years in Florence State Prison for selling drugs in Arizona. This raw, unflinching memoir is the remarkable tale of how he emerged after his years in the penitentiary—much of it spent in isolation—with the ability to read and a passion for writing poetry.
 
“Proof there is always hope in even the most desperate lives.” —Fort Worth Star-Telegram
 
“A hell of a book, quite literally. You won’t soon forget it.” —The San Diego U-T
 
“This book will have a permanent place in American letters.” —Jim Harrison, New York Times–bestselling author of A Good Day to Die

Ratings and reviews

This book is absolutely amazing, the author immersed me into his story and his situation and made me feel as if I was experiecing them firsthand. I recommend this story to any and every type of person.

I was fascinated reading this book and meeting the author Santiago Baca in person was one of the best things that has happened to me. After reading this book I started thinking differently. It's truly inspiring! A true story of a real hero.

Read it for my English class. A tragic story with a beautiful ending. Jimmy is my hero. He showed that it's never too late to think about your future.

About the author

Jimmy Santiago Baca was born in Santa Fe, New Mexico. He has written several books of poetry and a number of screenplays. His awards include the National Endowment of Poetry Award, Vogelstein Foundation Award, National Hispanic Heritage Award, Berkeley Regents Award, Pushcart Prize, Southwest Book Award, and American Book Award.