A boy with no one to listen becomes a man in prison for life and discovers his mind can be free. A woman enters prison to teach and becomes his first listener. And so begins a twenty-five year friendship between two gifted writers and poets. The result is By Heart-- a book that will anger you, give you hope, and break your heart."--Gloria Steinem For most of their adult lives, since meeting as teacher and pupil at San Quentin State Prison, Judith Tannenbaum and Spoon Jackson have conferred, corresponded, and sometimes collaborated, producing very different bodies of work resting on the same understanding: that human beings have one foot in darkness, another in light. Moving stories of their childhoods and adult creative lives reveal both tragedy and beauty. In alternating chapters--part memoir, part essay--By Heart reveals painful truths about prison, education, and which children our world nurtures and which it shuns. At its core are two stories that speak for human imagination, spirit, and expression. Judith Tannenbaum is a nationally respected poet, educator, lecturer, and the author of Disguised as a Poem, among other works, including poetry, anthologies, and guidebooks for teaching arts in prison. She coordinates training at WritersCorps. Born into an impoverished family of fifteen boys, Spoon Jackson was sentenced to life without possibility of parole by age twenty. He discovered himself as a writer for the first time in prison, eventually becoming an award-winning, internationally-known poet and essayist, as well as a facilitator of creative writing classes for other prisoners.
A book of poems and collages that, as J Ruth Gendler writes in the Foreword, "illuminate our condition, point toward the mysterious and the real, name sufferings, say what is true. "Judith's fidelity to her experience, her tender detachment and her precise observation gives these laments and praise songs their strength, their shape and power so that they become a balm, a gift to us, a present made from silence and language and courage.
Tannenbaum reminds readers not only that men and women behind bars are human, and therefore deserving of our respect and compassion, but that they have much to tell us about our propensity for both barbarism and beauty." -- Booklist
Rabbi, writer, teacher, activist, and organizer, Marc H. Tanenbaum was for more than three generations at the center of the struggle for religious understanding and human rights. As a pioneer in ecumenical dialogue, Tanenbaum left an inedible mark on many communities of faith. This rich collection of Tanenbaum's most influential writings underscores his contributions to civil and human rights, international affairs and--above all--the development of Jewish-Christian understanding and mutual respect. Special features of this book include a biographical essay and introductions to the major issues and the essays.
Thank you for visiting our website. Would you like to provide feedback on how we could improve your experience?
This site does not use any third party cookies with one exception — it uses cookies from Google to deliver its services and to analyze traffic.Learn More.