50 pages • 1 hour read
Michelle KuoA modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more.
Reading with Patrick is identified as a memoir, but it incorporates the characteristics of other genres. How else could the book be identified? How does it relate to other books (e.g., W.E.B. DuBois’s The Souls of Black Folk) that incorporate facets of various genres to discuss a social concern?
Consider Kuo’s observations about the Helena jail and Patrick’s reports about “trusties.” What conclusions can you draw about the American penal system? How does the treatment of inmates in these facilities counter the argument that they are correctional, particularly when compared to correctional facilities in other nations, such as those in Scandinavian countries?