From Publishers Weekly
Following the successful release of his first self-published book (Bomb the Suburbs), Wimsatt finds more issues to rant about in his latest collection of essays, some of which have appeared in such publications as the Utne Reader and the New Haven Advocate. In some of his most lucid writing, the self-proclaimed “cool rich kid” takes on the American penal system and its emphasis on punishment at the expense of hope and rehabilitation. However, much of that s…
Buy No More Prisons: Urban Life, Homeschooling, Hip-Hop Leadership, the Cool Rich Kids Movement, a Hitchhiker’s Guide to Community Organizing, and Why Philanthropy … the Greatest Art Form of the 21st Century! at Amazon
The book takes a look at many themes and topics — urban life, self-schooling, hip-hop activism and leadership, the cool rich kids movement and grassroots philanthropy, a hitchhiker’s approach to community organizing. Any one could have been expanded in to a book of its own. As a followup to Bomb the Suburbs, No More Prisons is less focused and much delayed (Some of the writing inside dates back to ’95, if not sooner.) but still an inspirational and instructive read. And despite the book’s wide range of topics, the fact that Upski so firmly espouses the philanthropic tip is a beautiful and encouraging thing. Makes me think I’m not doing enough… for enough people… in enough places. Another reviewer has it totally right: No More Prisons is the kind of book that you keep buying and handing off to friends, family, and other people you want to turn on. There are few books that I buy multiple copies of at the same time. This is one of them.
After reading about 1/4 of this book, I just couldn’t put it down and finished the rest in one sitting. It’s that amazing. Don’t be fooled by the title, this book has very little about actual prisons. In fact only the first 12 pages or so are about actual prisons, the rest of the book uses the metaphor of a prison to show how society largely traps us.
The section on homeschooling is amazing. Prior to reading this book I had always just thought of school as the only path for a kid. I didn’t even know that it was possible to go to college without going to either a public or private high school (although, now that I think about it it does seem that the kids who win the national spelling bee each year are usually homeschooled). And there are numerous other topics covered in this book.
This book is a hip hop book, but I feel this really needs clarification. Hip hop is one of the most misunderstood concepts in recent time. Hip hop is not about making money, it is about universal brotherhood (and is in many ways similiar to zen buddhism). There is a fundamental difference between hip hop and rap. Rap is what most people think of when they think of hip hop, which is a shame because people like Puff Daddy have nothing in common with hip hop (people like Afrika Bambaata).
Oh well, enough with my rant about hip hop. If you live in an urban center this should be required reading. If you believe that there is nothing you can really do to make a difference for the better, read this book and see if you still feel the same way.
Highly recommended.
Half-way through this book, I realized I had to call the publisher and buy 100 copies and go sell them on the streetcorner. Much more coherently organized and presented, and more eloquently written, than Bomb the Suburbs. Upski is the Obi Wan Kanobi of the underground/punk/hip-hop writing scene. Not just a lot of information and good stories, but inspiration and numbers and websites and addresses and names of books that you need to do all the stuff you’ll want to do after you read this. Don’t resist the force… run to your local independent bookstore and pick up a copy now.