Reading Liberally Book Club

By Behrouz Boochani

Genre: Memoir

Very seldom does a work come out that can be described as punk rock and subversive, but Boochani’s memoir is nothing but extraordinary. Written on a smugged mobile phone, and translated from Farsi, the Kurdish-Iranian journalist initially fled as a political refugee only to find himself held as a political prisoner in Australia’s Manus Island refugee dentention center in 2013. It wasn’t until his release in 2019 that he was finally able to publish his writing, a mixture of poetry and aching memoir as he details the daily life of the prisoners on Manus Island.

Now a resident of New Zealand, he is able to finally speak up on behalf of refugees, fleeing terrible situations and political turmoil, often created by outside forces. This book is a stirring, and critical read given our current political climate, and the entirety of the text was transcribed from the writings he made on his smuggled mobile phone on Manus Island Prison.

By Angela Y. Davis

Genre: Non-Fiction Historical Anthology

Angela Davis’ trial is still one of the most famous political trials in American History and in this book Angela tells the story herself. Drawing from the writings she made while in prison, and the letters she received while in jail or from fellow inmates, she creates and stunning and stark look at the American penal system and how it treates it’s political prisoners.

This book includes writings from her friends and fellow prisoners James Baldwin (American Writer and Literary Legend), George Jackson (Activist and member of the Black Panther Party), Huey Newton (co-founder of the Black Panther Party), Bobby Seale (co-founder of the Black Panther Party), and Erica Huggins (writer, and activist).

Angela Davis truly takes her powerful voice and pulls back the curtain, showing the history of black violence and racial profiling that led to the current racist american justice system.

By Oscar Wilde

Genre: Long Form Letter

At the height of his popularity, Oscar Wilde was considered the most brilliant mind his era. A writer and poet of unparalleled skill, most in the modern era would consider him beyond reproach. A celebrity. However, in 1895 he was arrested for the crime of indecency, which was the term for homosexuality. Oscar Wilde was imprisoned at the notably cruel Gaol jail, where his health quickly began to deteriorate.

Stripped of his celebrity status, of his good looks and health, he penned a letter to his lover Lord Alfred “Bosie” Douglas that would never be delivered while he was imprisoned. In it, he reflects on what it means to be alive, on what it means to famous, and on what it means to love.

The letter was only published after his death, his health so weakened after his time served in Gaol Jail, but it is considered at once a magnum opus and an intimate look at the life of a celebrity who was not safe from public that adored him.