Análisis de diario de la biblioteca
The 1971 Attica State Prison riot grew from a protest for humane treatment and better conditions--including minimum wage for prison labor, competent medical care, and rehabilitation programs. Big Black, incarcerated for a drug swindle, plays security chief and mediator for the inmates. But under Gov. Nelson Rockefeller and President Richard Nixon, the officials, media, and public are all too willing to believe fabricated reports. The riot is quelled with mass slaughter and torture. Gritty newsreel-type visuals with brownish/ochre touches. (LJ 2/20) |
Análisis semanal de editoriales
Smith (1933--2004) was a prisoner who took a leadership role within the 1971 Attica prison uprising, and this immersive graphic memoir (coauthored by the stepson of his longtime lawyer) illuminates the plantationlike environment that precipitated the hostage crisis--and the bloody siege that followed. The son of a South Carolina sharecropper, Smith was sentenced to 10--15 years in prison in 1965 for holding up a dice game. At Attica, he becomes the yard football coach and bonds with an older prisoner obsessed with da Vinci's Vitruvian Man, an illustration repeated throughout the book to depict Smith's later torture by guards in retribution for the uprising. The beating of two inmates triggers the prisoner revolt, in which guards and other employees are taken captive, and Smith is named by fellow inmates as head of security. He attempts to ensure hostage safety and manage tensions among inmates as they present their manifesto and appeals to then-governor Nelson Rockefeller. The account also details the 25-year legal battle that resulted in a 1997 settlement to Smith and others for their maltreatment. The stellar artwork by Améziane (Muhammad Ali) includes tabloidlike chapter openers rendered with bold fonts and exaggerated letterboxes. His expressive realism and muted colors invoke a nostalgic 1970s pulp effect reminiscent of Ed Piskor's work. This penetrating portrait of a broken correctional system and a flawed man focuses on his legacy of courage, which towers over the forces stacked against him. (Feb.) |
Análisis de lista de libros
Following an unexpected breach in security protocol, power at a prison in Attica, New York, was usurped by its prisoners in 1971. At this moment, prisoners became guards and those who were once guards became hostages. Among the leaders of the revolution was Smith, aka Big Black, a well-loved and respected Black man from the South who valued harmony and loved football. While the prisoners made demands for more just and humane conditions, political powers beyond the cells, namely Governor Nelson Rockefeller, vied for an opportunity to demonstrate decisive strength against the uprising. More than 40 men died in the violent aftermath, and torturous reprisals ensued. This graphic memoir, coauthored by Big Black himself, is not for the faint of heart, as it depicts a number of inhumane abuses. Panels are largely monochromatic, lending a credible air to a historical period. The narrative is clear in its chronological documentation, though looseness in the narrative perspective takes away from the overall power of the memoir. Fans of nonfiction and readers interested in racial politics will enjoy. |