Memoirs of a Hoodstar

Book excerpt: In 2008, the United States Supreme Court ruled Californias prison system as unconstitutionally cruel and overcrowded. The decision mandated the downsizing of a prison system that had risen to become the largest in America. How did California become the king of imprisonment, and what prompted the mass incarceration of a generation of minority males? Memoirs of a Hoodstar is a real look at one mans life as he goes from a serious hustler to prison inmate. Jamal ends up behind bars after living a life of crime, and although he deserves some punishment, he soon begins to realize the huge number of African American males behind bars is more than punishment: its a political game and hes just one of the pawns paying a priceless price. Greedy men like Big Al make loads of dough on the California penal system, and nobodys stopping them. Jamal hopes that the madness will stop, but who will stand up for prison inmates? D.Durand Hall provides the uncut truth behind the barbaric imprisonment of Californias notorious department of Corrections but also reveals how ex-cons can turn their lives around.