Ride the Lightning

Robert H. Mitchell

ISBN 10: 0806129174 / ISBN 13: 9780806129174

Published by University of Oklahoma Press, Norman, 1997

About this Item

{University of Oklahoma Press; Norman; 1997; Hard Cover; Near Fine/Near Fine; 8vo - over 7¾" - 9¾" tall; First Edition; Signed by Author; ISBN: 0-8061-2917-4.} Dj rubbed, with slight wear at extremities. Inscribed by the author on half-title page: For Lena Beth / An artist without peer! / "Enjoy the Ride" / 9/8/2000 Robert H. Mitchell "Inspired by the 1973 riot at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, one of the most destructive prison riots in U.S. history, Robert H. Mitchell's Ride the Lightning spins a fascinating web of political and legal intrigue. The blazing sun has sent the thermometer soaring over 100 degrees, and the three thousand inmates of McHenry Penitentiary, an aging, decrepit institution built to hold six hundred, are beginning to simmer. Governor David Horton, ignoring his advisors' warnings, adamantly refuses to allocate money to repair and expand the crumbling, overcrowded facility. A prison riot, however, could be just the trump card needed by his political rival Glen Tobias. Moreover, certain inmates are aware that a riot would provide the perfect cover for an escape attempt. The new player in events at McHenry is young attorney Eric Williams, who views his recent appointment to the state pardon and parole board as a boost to his career and a distraction from his disintegrating marriage. He also sees in the appointment an opportunity to help society's unfortunates, who have run afoul of the law but now are struggling to turn their lives around. If Williams is not careful, his idealism could make him easy prey for manipulative criminals, not all of whom are behind bars. With a sure hand, Mitchell ratchets up the tension at every step of the way, through the climactic riot and the shocking denouement. At the same time, the novel addresses timely questions of prison reform, rehabilitation, and the problems faced by inmates preparing to return to life outside prison." Listing updated 9-26-2006.

Seller Inventory # 003373

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Ride the Lightning
• Publisher: University of Oklahoma Press, Norman
• Publication Date: 1997
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0806129174
• ISBN 13: 9780806129174
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition: First Edition
• Condition: Near Fine
• Dust Jacket Condition: Near Fine
• Signed: Signed by Author(s)
• Seller catalogs:
  • Fiction--General Fiction

About this title

Synopsis

An indigenous poet of the Nuosu (Yi) people of mountainous southwestern China, Jidi Majia is well known and celebrated among the Chinese. But his lyrical and worldly work, though widely published and honored, has not found its voice in English translation in the West. The poems in Rhapsody in Black, presented in Chinese and deftly translated by the gifted and respected Denis Mair, at long last introduce the English-speaking world to this remarkable Chinese writer.The poetry of Jidi Majia is deeply grounded in the myths and oral traditions of the Nuosu minority. It evokes times past but also speaks with eloquence of our global moment. Replete with cultural textures and local idiom, the poems provide an exquisite opening into the Nuosu world. In their ethnic richness, they also resonate with the voices of the indigenous and the dispossessed, from Native American and South American Indian poets to the African American and aboriginal Australian writers preserving and reshaping cultural identity.Jidi Majia’s voice sounds the depths of natural, cultural, and spiritual reality. In his poem “Voice of the Bimo,” the power of a Nuosu ritualist’s expression is reflected in his own: In tones both human and divine, it utters A praise song for birth and death When it invokes sun, stars, rivers, and ancient heroes When it summons deities and surreal powers Departed beings commence their resurrection!The poems in this volume broaden and deepen our experience of the world—Jidi Majia’s and our own.

About the Author

Robert H. Mitchell is an Oklahoma City attorney specializing in trial law. He has served as Chief Legal Counsel to the Governor of Oklahoma and as chairman of the state's pardon and parole board. Ride the lightning is his first novel.