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Walter Probyn

Angel Face: The Making of a Criminal

Angel Face: The Making of a Criminal

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Angel Face is a 1977 book by Walter Probyn that describes his penal life and 15 escapes from prison. It raises questions about the need for reform of the penal system and discusses Probyn's story in a wider context.

Format: Hardback
Length: 250 pages
Publication date: 24 February 2023
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd


First published in 1977, Angel Face chronicles the penal life of Walter Probyn, who spent 30 out of 44 years in prison and escaped 15 times. He vividly describes the series of events that began when he was a nine-year-old "blitz kid" who "stole a can of peas from a bombed shop" and recounts his time in prison and on the run in captivating and harrowing detail. While his account and indictment of prison life and the treatment of so-called hardened offenders are significant, it is his meticulous attention to carefully planned and ingenious escapes that provide profound insight into his unwavering struggle to maintain his independence and his insatiable yearning for freedom.

This book does not glorify crime. Instead, it raises serious and debatable questions about the need for reform of a penal system that has failed in its objectives. These issues are explored in an introduction and final commentary by renowned criminologist Stan Cohen, who places Probyn's story within a broader context. His life serves as a classic example of how the penal system, rather than curing crime, may actually encourage it by strengthening the resolve and bitterness of those who resist being institutionalized and fitting into authority's molds. However, is spending three-quarters of a lifetime a justifiable price to pay? The authorities and Walter Probyn offer different answers to this question.

Angel Face will captivate anyone intrigued by the other side of the penal system, particularly students of law, criminology, and sociology. It offers a unique perspective on the complexities of the criminal justice system and sheds light on the human cost of incarceration.


Dimension: 234 x 156 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781032421117

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