Welcome to Book Readers Heaven! Find Books, Reviews, Short Stories, Authors, Publicity, a little poetry, music to complement...and other stuff including politics, about life... "Books, Cats: Life is Sweet..."
“A writer must stare at a blank page until blood comes out of their forehead." --Ernest Hemingway
Also, A Dark, Comedic, New Mexico Whodunit (Humorous Amateur Sleuth Noir Crime Thrillers Book 1)
LOL
I have to say that this may be the longest subtitle of a book I've ever seen... I can't quite figure out whether the writer didn't know which to use, or, that, it was very important that the potential reader knew what they were getting into...
Ok Comedic and Humorous could mean the same thing...
Whodunit implies mystery, but this is a crime thriller also... multiple genre, right...
Most books don't declare the setting as Really Important... New Mexico must have different types of stories to tell???
Or does this all mean that the writer wants us to know in advance to beware of the story???
We'll See, I'm game, but are you?
And by the way, when I typed in the title, Google Search automatically changed stiff to stuff...
Kinda makes you wonder, doesn't it?
Is this book really worth all this trouble to get to start reading... This one wants to know, So I did start...
My first check is always on You Tube... You guessed it, all the videos came up about Good Stuff...
Doesn't anybody know that Stiff is another word for a dead person?
I did...but maybe I know "stuff" about "stiffs..."
I've read or watched stories enough about them so I'm good for just about any description to say that somebody is dead...
How they're dead is the key...
But I can also remember that Hammer--you know who he is, I hope--called bodies stiffs--I think!
Anyway, all this is to show writers that if you add all this stuff onto your subtitle, readers just may never be able to find you, especially on sites that require a full book title, including subtitle...
Believe me, I know... I could have just been linked to the book, bought it, and then when I wanted to find it again to review, I can't find it! Writers need to know about the full idiosyncrasies of selling books, in my opinion... LOL
Or, I am just silly this morning realizing that I may be the only person in the world that knows what a stiff is...
Writers Beware...
On with the story
But, let's get one thing straight...
Death is not a funny matter
Is Fiction Now Reality?
And can a whodunit ever be a comedy?
I think so, because these actions by authoritarian leaders are NOT LEGAL!
He convinced himself that he never lied to me and couldn’t understand my disappointment. Self-delusion epitomizes the imprisoned mind.
There’s outright racism, hidden racism, and differential treatment for people of color. It’s all here...
The Imprisoned Mind - Everyone has a story. The stories of men with an imprisoned mind may seem more incomprehensible than others. When you have a comprehensive understanding of the mindset, however, you begin to better understand the actions of the men who are trapped with it. I once came across an episode of the television show Cops. I watched as the police pulled a man from a wrecked vehicle and handcuffed him. The surrounding pandemonium suggested that I’d missed a car chase, and, as was the premise of the show, the “good guys” had nabbed the “bad guy.” The exasperated officer, clearly familiar with the suspect, placed his prisoner in the back seat of his squad car and huffed, “How many times have you ran from the police?” With a smirk on his face and in a casual tone, the prisoner answered, “Twenty-six times.” I can only imagine the average viewer’s reaction to hearing that: “Damn! Twenty-six times? That man’s crazy!” or, “What the hell’s wrong with that dude? He must enjoy getting arrested!” These viewer responses seem rational given the circumstances, but I’ve yet to hear anyone accurately explain why people, such as this man, continue to believe they can get away with breaking the law after having been caught so many times. Clearly, this man wasn’t so crazy that he didn’t know he’d broken the law—he wouldn’t have run from the police otherwise. And I’ve yet to find one prisoner who actually enjoys being arrested, so that must not be the problem. It was obvious to me there was something wrong with this man, and those like him, but what?
Tracing the development of the imprisoned mind begins with childhood. Stories of unimaginable childhood abuses and neglect are prevalent throughout “the hood” and prisons. Growing up, I remember listening to “homies” openly talk about their adverse childhood experiences. A homey once told me about watching his mom kill his dad. It was chilling to hear him describe seeing the bullet pierce his father’s chest as if it was a scene from a movie and not his actual life. Another spoke of his backside being beaten by his stepdad in such gory detail that I was reminded of hearing similar stories of slaves being whipped by their master. I remember feeling uneasy each time I listened to one of these stories. I mean, what’s a kid supposed to say to someone who’s being so open about such horrific personal experiences? All I’d say was, “Damn! That’s messed up,” or, “Man! That ain’t right.” I thought it was a coincidence when I began hearing many of the same stories in prison. Sure, each story is different, but they’re all still painfully similar. It was clear to me that each individual continued to be plagued by their past experiences as if they had only recently happened. Yet each man had no clue how their past continued to affect their present. It didn’t take long for me to notice how emotionally detached everyone seemed to be while recalling their vividly horrific experiences. Some told their stories as if they were no big deal, casually joking about them. One person laughed about being beaten, at the age of seven, by his mother’s boyfriend. He had a gun put to his head because he’d urinated while asleep on his mom’s couch. “Shit,” the man chuckled as he recalled the story, “it made me stronger, and best believe I didn’t piss myself again after that!” Of everyone who has told me a story of childhood traumas, only one person ever choked up while recalling his traumatic experience. Even then, he continued to tell his story with such numbness that I began to wonder if there was a relationship between childhood trauma and incarceration. By that point, I’d become aware of my own emotional detachment and subsequent imprisoned mindset due to childhood trauma, but I wondered just how common this link was in prison. I set out to find the answer. The development of the imprisoned mind starts with emotionally sensitive children who’ve experienced trauma that is left untreated. The child then begins to experience mental and emotional distress. Without knowledge of healthy coping mechanisms, they eventually turn to drugs and alcohol and begin making other risky decisions. These behaviors don’t heal the trauma; they only serve to temporarily numb or distract from the agony of the mental and emotional distress. The individual becomes so focused on achieving this temporary relief that their willingness to engage in criminal endeavors becomes habitual. With each illegal act, the mindset evolves into a rigid criminal mentality, one that arrests all future development. I recognized prominent and recurring themes in the lives of everyone I believed showed signs of having an imprisoned mind. Like me, everyone readily admitted to being an emotionally sensitive child prior to their initial traumatic experience. My own mother and sisters would describe me as a crybaby. I wondered if this predisposition factored into the intensity of the symptoms of having post-traumatic stress disorder.
Additionally, the individual with an imprisoned mind often experienced the absence of one or both parents during childhood. This absence, I found, caused some to seek out a semblance of a family or brotherhood, such as joining a gang or the military, to fill the void left by their own fractured family. Being a part of something we feel is bigger than ourselves gives us a sense of belonging to the “family” we feel we never had. The progression of the imprisoned mind is highlighted by denial and deflection. The individual who possesses an imprisoned mind is generally unaware that anything is wrong with them. It’s as if we develop a form of tunnel vision and become hyper-focused on satisfying our desires and needs. The problem with this mentality is its self-deceiving nature: the imprisoned mind causes us to believe that things we simply want are so important that we are required to have them. Our inability to differentiate between our wants and our needs leads to a sense of urgency and a lack of patience when it comes to acquiring what we feel we must have. We then develop an egoistic attitude. Our imprisoned mind leads us to believe that everything is about us and produces behavior that seems rude or inconsiderate. We lie and manipulate to get what we want. We believe that we have honor and integrity, but in reality they’re foreign concepts to us. If there are rules that hinder our ability to do as we feel, then we will attempt to find ways around those rules or just ignore them. It doesn’t occur to us that our actions affect anyone outside of ourselves. When faced with the consequences of our actions, we deny culpability, we feign ignorance, and we deflect responsibility. Saying “everybody does it” is a typical excuse, and one that is indicative of the irrationality of the imprisoned mind, yet it’s suitable enough for us to justify committing unethical or illegal acts. Once we’re caught and suffer the consequences of our actions, the imprisoned mind causes us to see ourselves as victims, virtually blind to our own accountability. The permanence of the imprisoned mind is dependent upon the further traumas we’re exposed to while involved in the criminal underworld. Witnessing violence firsthand as a child causes us to be more likely to engage in violent behavior as adults. The imprisoned mind’s self-deceptive nature convinces us that our learned violent behavior is the only way to respond to perceived threats. We then end up in precarious situations that expose us to more trauma, thus intensifying the mindset. Those who are repeatedly exposed to violence can develop an antisocial attitude that is often misunderstood as sociopathic. In our minds, the violence we engage in tends to be more reactive than senseless. We detest having to engage in it, and we typically only do so when we believe it’s necessary to protect our well-being, our way of life, or the well-being of those we care about. This attitude seems to result from overexposure to hypervigilance and lasts as long as we feel threatened in an apparently hostile environment. Once we’re removed from our hostile environments, this attitude can begin to dissipate and is eventually replaced with shame and a desire to better ourselves. I’ve been interested in human behavior since I can remember. Figuring out why people do the things that they do consumed much of my childhood curiosity. And it continues to this day. I began my informal studies in psychology during middle school. These studies only intensified during my incarceration. I’ve formally taken classes and informally read whatever books I could get my hands on to better understand myself and others. Through my studies, I discovered sociology, and I began research in criminology after taking an Inside-Out Prison Exchange Program class in 2016. I’ve taken human subjects and qualitative interviewing training through Arizona State University, and I’ve personally interviewed over 200 prisoners for two groundbreaking Participatory Action Research projects.1 Together, my studies, my training, and over two decades of experience with prisoners and incarceration make me uniquely qualified to write this book. But I struggled with how to best advance the imprisoned mind idea. I wasn’t even sure who, if anyone, would be interested in an argument from someone who is incarcerated and lacks an academic degree. That is, until a wise man told me, “It’s not about the degree. It’s the experience living that life and with being incarcerated, having the access to prisoners who can support the idea that’s unique.” I decided the only way to lend credibility to my claim would be to tell the stories of the men who I’m referring to as having the imprisoned mind: prisoners. I set out to find those on the unit who had the mindset and were willing to share their life story with me and the world. I was surprised and pleased to discover that many prisoners were eager to have their stories told. I sat with each man and took notes by hand, as recording devices are prohibited, while they recounted their life stories to me. I interviewed in our cells. I interviewed in the middle of the prison yard. I interviewed in the Arizona heat. Each meeting had to be broken down into several sessions as time permitted. We had to work around lockdowns and count times. I processed the information acquired from each discussion and wrote each subject’s story in the first person. Each individual’s story is compiled as a chapter, detailing how instances of trauma can contribute to a singular, common outcome: prison.
The chapters that follow are real-life accounts based upon the lives of six men who were emotionally damaged during the most vulnerable time in their life. Each chapter provides detailed descriptions of the harm, pain, and anguish some boys have experienced, and then later caused. I believe all six men have an imprisoned mind, but each of their stories better represent different stages of the mindset. In the first part of the book, Kidd’s and Sergeant’s stories epitomize the childhood trauma and neglect that contribute to the development of the imprisoned mind. In the next part, Oso’s and Dee’s stories show how denial and deflection contribute to the progression of the imprisoned mind. In the last part, Oakland’s and Unique’s stories demonstrate how the mindset can be fortified through continued victimization and trauma. These stories are not told to excuse our behavior or to justify our incarceration. Rather, the following brief life histories are meant to highlight the origin of the irrationalities that drastically influence the criminal mind, and to educate those who believe they have criminality all figured out. At times, what’s told here isn’t pretty. But sometimes the most meaningful lessons are born from ugliness. Dr. Kevin Wright joins me in the final part of the book on outside and inside solutions. Kevin and I have worked together on this book for over seven years. He has provided feedback and assistance on all aspects of the book, from helping me to refine the idea of the imprisoned mind to leading our efforts to secure a publisher to copyediting all drafts of the book. Here he contributes a chapter that leverages his outside knowledge as a correctional scholar to complement my inside knowledge as someone who has lived through an imprisoned mind. Where “imprisoned minds” could suggest an individual pathology, Kevin’s chapter makes clear that our life circumstances—especially our adverse experiences as young boys—limit our opportunities for healthy physical and mental development. He writes about the value of combining his outside knowledge with my inside lived experience to suggest solutions to enhance the lives of people who are living and working in the correctional system. I conclude the book with a chapter that identifies what needs to happen outside of the correctional system to prevent the development, disrupt the progression, and reverse the permanence of the imprisoned mind. In simplest terms, we need to support both the lost boys and the trapped men—especially when they are experiencing and working through the trauma that can derail their opportunity to find purpose and meaning as humans. I never thought I’d end up in prison. Nobody with an imprisoned mind ever does. We’re perpetually caught up in a moment that is our life. For me, that moment was proving that I was “a man” and making money. Others’ form of self-deceit differs, but the results are all the same. Days, weeks, months, and years go by without us even realizing that all aspects of our personal development have ceased. Once you have the imprisoned mind, I believe that there are only two destinies: death or incarceration. Unfortunately, we’re unable to comprehend that we’re blinded by our own compulsions, slaves to our impulses, while deceived into limiting our own options in life. When our perceived options are limited (and none of them seem good), then it stands to reason why we make the wrong decisions. We become trapped by an irrational mindset. While I’m unable to tell the stories of the men whose mindset led them to their demise, I can tell the stories of the men.
!!!!
As far as I am aware, Johnny Cash is the only music artist who specifically provided a prison program during his active performing years... So immediately I remembered how those who listened to his shows were so involved and excited to hear what he had to say... When I saw this book advertised, I knew I wanted to read it. The first and only contact I'd made was through a book, of course... But in talking with the young man, he happened to mention that even when he got out, he would not be allowed to vote! To me, that just seemed wrong. If somebody has fulfilled the court's requirements, then that individual should return to the same rights available to all of us--if the prison system was doing what it was meant to do...
But this book clearly shows that the evolution of what occurs in prisons has been steadily going downhill in relation to helping our citizens to move back into a meaningful life.
The other involvement I'd had was with the WV Prison System when as the manager of classrooms on the WVU campus, we at one time had our wooden classroom seats cannibalized for ongoing use. Again, that type of program which helped provide both income and a work program apparently no longer occurs. The impression provided was that those in prison these days have little opportunity to occupy their bodies and minds...
Finally I want to highlight my personal response as I read this book. The title has a much farther possible use than for those intended by the book. I found myself responding, based upon today's world, as well as from other books, that there could be many people locked into an imprisoned mind. In fact, it could be used by those women who have experienced rape or physical assaults which have traumatized them thereafter. I quickly note that this book does not cover women--purely because of the circumstances of the writer and his location. I remember, however, when I went into burnout based upon my job, there was No term available for a medical diagnosis other than clinical depression. I was not depressed. My mind was burnt out and could no longer function... Thus, I could easily have defined my feelings as a my mind being imprisoned... Job Burnout has since then been added as a specific diagnosis for purposes of diagnosis of simply a very tired mind... PTSD is also one of those which is used across multiple mental results faced either by those in the military, or, for instance, after a rape or other traumatic event.
So, why am I beginning this discussion with this highlight of Imprisoned Minds? Because I want readers to know that this book can be valuable to other people who have never actually been in prison. Consider all of the individuals who commit crimes for which we never determine the background, the reason, or the individual who committed the crime never gets to prison...
Also not covered in this book is the major issue of gun control, drugs, sexual or physical abuse, or political influence. Be aware, however, that the individual stories by those interviewed will be discussing these issues... A final note: The number of interviews were limited by the space available for the entire book covering this important subject. Erik was responsible for identifying what he had determined to be his own diagnosis/identification of what he called how he felt. Only those identified as having "imprisoned minds" were included...
Each story takes a chapter--this is not the total first story since copyright has stopped further sharing... In my opinion this book is a must-read... The remainder of the book gets into a review of the issues within and without the prison, including support changes for programs necessary. At this time, in this political climate, it is questionable whether any of the proposals would even be considered given the racial discrimination mentioned earlier and the present DEI mandates...
But this is not a singular issue, or a single book. This issue cannot really be addressed pre-prison, in my opinion, since drugs and guns are preventing what the majority of people want to change... There are other books related to guns, for instance, that should be considered. Most importantly is that what I saw in this book was a total lack of interest on the part of too many people. Dare I say on the part of one political party in particular. We already know that even school shootings has no effect on republicans. Certainly, caring for those in prison would never be on their radar...
You know folks, I still have NO answer as to why pro-life can be considered a mandate for republicans, while at the same time, they could care less about what happens to those children once they are born. There is always talk about drugs by that party, but bombing boats really has little to do with access available in the U.S. When somebody turns to selling drugs to be able to survive, which ultimately turns into a desire for making lots of money and fighting over territories/gangs... there has to be full awareness at the state level that these issues must be addressed...
We've talked about the fact that children learn how they will live based upon their early home life. I come from a poor background, but what I saw was my widowed mother working 24/7 to feed and shelter us. When the U.S. is the only major country that allows mass shootings to continue, then each of us has to realize that something is very wrong... And it doesn't mean that more guns is the solution...
This nonfiction book should be in every library. It is published by a university, based upon the content being of value to be shared across our land... When you read an individual's story and see that they live based upon what their environment has taught them, then, in my opinion, the United States should be embarrassed that what you will read and learn about those with imprisoned minds, is very possibly NOT the fault of the individual...who...is...imprisoned...
The President of the United States Is a Wretched Cur!
Trump’s Insults Toward Rob Reiner and Hardy’s Henchard
A few weeks ago, I penned a piece in which I described the United States President as a “wretched cur!” It was a reference from a novel I was required to read as a high school senior, titled The Mayor of Casterbridge, written by Thomas Hardy, about a once very popular mayor, Michael Henchard, who had fallen out of office and was on hard times. He sold his wife at the town fair. This act is akin to a 21st-century American President burying his first wife on his golf course so he can receive a tax break on the golf course property.
The tragic deaths of Rob and Michele Reiner on December 14, 2025, allegedly at the hands of their son Nick, shocked Hollywood and the wider public. Yet what compounded grief was Donald Trump’s response. Instead of offering condolences, Trump used the moment to berate Reiner in death, attributing his murder to “Trump Derangement Syndrome” and later doubling down by calling him “deranged” and “bad for our country.”
When I wrote that piece, I felt compelled to turn Henchard’s words, therefore, Trump’s words, back on him. “Out of my sight, wretched cur!” Trump is alive, but if I were to pen an Obit at his demise, I think that line from Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge would sum up the sentiment of many people worldwide.
This rhetorical move exemplifies Trump’s tendency to weaponize insults, even in contexts that demand compassion. His words sought not only to dismiss Reiner’s political opposition but to destroy his persona in death, reframing a family tragedy as political theater.
What can we learn from Hardy’s overarching theme in The Mayor of Casterbridge?
Thomas Hardy’s The Mayor of Casterbridge offers a literary parallel. Michael Henchard, once a respected mayor, descends into bitterness and jealousy. His insult— “Out of my sight, wretched cur!”—directed at his rival Donald Farfrae, is not strategic but impulsive. Hardy shows how Henchard’s vindictive language overreaches: it does not merely wound Farfrae, it corrodes Henchard himself. The insult becomes a mirror, reflecting Henchard’s unraveling character and accelerating his downfall.
Hardy’s theme is clear: vindictive language destroys not only the target’s dignity but also the speaker’s moral standing. The overreach lies in the attempt to annihilate another’s persona, which inevitably exposes the speaker’s own flaws.
Both Trump and Henchard demonstrate the destructive overreach of vindictive language. Trump’s berating of Rob Reiner in death shows how insult can corrode the dignity of leadership, while Hardy’s Henchard illustrates how insult corrodes the dignity of the self. In both cases, the attempt to destroy another’s persona ultimately diminishes the speaker most of all.
Given the “wretched cur’s” remarks at the killing of beloved actor and producer Rob Reiner, is it appropriate to write about how snarled and knotted the mind of the “wretched cur” is when he sleeps? Should journalists who describe the “wretched cur” in death as the miserable facsimile of a human that he is lose their jobs, as many did on reporting on the assassination of Charlie Kirk?
I’m going to go out on a limb and say that in death as in life, there is no good way to describe Trump. Any attempt to do so at his demise would torture the English language to the point of making it unrecognizable. How can the country mourn and honor a life full of bombast, manure, and self-loathing without defining itself as bombastic, full of manure, and stuck on itself? Why bother to lower the flag or give a 21-gun salute?
Without malice or vindictiveness, “Out of my sight, wretched cur!”
As some of you know, I had been on Facebook for over 20 years... Until I decided to forget trying to get past all the obstacles of getting back into my account. And created--GABixler--a new one. One of the things I have been trying to do is "find" what was already established... I've been trying to friend some of my old friends, but FB won't let me! I was active in Music, and found Ben's group and shared a post to see if it was "acceptable" for his group... So many groups are now closed... Thankfully it was... So, if you enjoy getting playlists that appear in books, but don't want to read and listen at the same time, join Ben's group and just listen to the music! LOL
I don't know how many have been coming from this group, but I appreciate sharing...
And then Ben wrote the above poem/lyrics... I found I wanted to respond and start promoting his songs... The first one I listened to was on SONO with the link above and I loved the words...Do take the time to listen!
Hey Ben, how about telling us more about you on your group and letting people know about your other songs...or you could share that info here as well... Just keep Writing!
