San Quentin Days Poems of a Prison
Sacramento: Press of Jos. E. Anderson, 1905. Stapled pictorial wrappers, 8 x 6.5", [32] pp. A collection of poems by an anonymous inmate at San Quentin prison in California. The poems touch upon the experience of being in prison, for instance a poem titled "Paroled" and one titled "Justice", which begins "I see between the bars dim shadows blending…." According to Andrea Brady's "Poetry and Bondage", this booklet represents an early example of a prison poetry anthology, and its prison-themed illustrations, which surround the text, are of special interest: "The poems are conventional in their verse forms and sentiments; they eulogise tender relationships, or meditate on the sunset as a prelude to regret. What is striking is the way that every poem is literally circumscribed by a carceral framework. Each page is surrounded with chains, walls and other material signifiers of the writer's penal enclosure" (121). Overall in very good condition with toning to wrappers and pages. Item #9074
Price: $250.00