{"product_id":"9781742625744","title":"Intractable","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eIntractable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e is a relentless and remarkable story of life on the inside of two of Australia's most brutal prison regimes - Grafton and Katingal - in the 70s.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn 1969 Bernie Matthews was convicted of armed robbery and sentenced to 10 years. A serial escapee, prison authorities soon classified Matthews as an intractable prisoner and he was transferred to the Alcatraz of the NSW prison system at Grafton. There, life was a routine series of bashings and solitary confinement, and as the systematic brutality of Grafton became a political scandal, Matthews and other prisoners found themselves transferred to a fresh hell in 1975 - Katingal Special Security Unit inside Sydney's Long Bay Jail, Australia's first super-max prison.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eA concrete bunker with no natural light or fresh air, Katingal replaced Grafton's bashings with sensory deprivation and psychological control. Suicide attempts and self-harm followed. One of the longest serving and surviving Katingal inmates, Matthews did not see daylight for two years, eight months.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eIntractable\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e is not only a shocking story of what it's like to do time but also a history of one of the great political scandals of the 70s from a unique perspective (Katingal was pulled down this year). It's also the eye-opening story of a man who managed to turn his life around in the worst of Australia's prisons to become a writer and prison activist.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Pan Macmillan Australia","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47157513126128,"sku":"9781742625744","price":20.9,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0737\/7593\/9824\/files\/9781742625744_p0.jpg?v=1763703589","url":"https:\/\/shop-qa.barnesandnoble.com\/products\/9781742625744","provider":"Barnes \u0026 Noble (DEV)","version":"1.0","type":"link"}