The Buddhist on Death Row: How One Man Found Light in the Darkest Place / David Sheff

RATINGS

Overall: 4 / 5 stars

Text Level: Medium

Entertainment: Medium

Self-Help: Medium

Genres: Nonfiction, Biography, Religion, Buddhism, Spirituality, Memoir, Philosophy, Inspirational

Page Count: 272

Is this book right for my inmate and me?

Readers from broken homes of poverty that have had it negatively affect their adult lives can find in this story of a life in prison.

Buy on: Target / Amazon / Barnes & Noble

Review By: Blackbird (Inmate)

Peace, hope, and enlightenment through death sentence.

When does life and our growth stop? For Jarvis Jay Masters, even the sentence of death for the murder of a prison guard decades earlier hasn’t stopped him from truly living and working to become more. The Buddhist on Death Row chronicles the life of a convicted inmate that currently sits on death row in San Quentin and his awakening to the truth of the spiritual universe.

Entering prison at a age of 19 for 13 armed robberies, Jarvis Masters was angry and only knew rage. Growing up with a drug addict mother and no father, he found his only ‘family’ behind bars inside a prison gang. This life of hurt and self-destruction eventually led to the participation in the murder of a prison guard that resulted in a death sentence.

With nowhere left to turn Masters was approached by a caring visitor with the beginning principles of Buddhism. At first skeptic, he began meditation and reflection with surprising results. Jarvis Masters found peace from pain and fear, that felt compelled to share with others. In this, he found purpose and meaning in service of others in need. Now an author and mentor to many, he is able to talk about love in a world that once he only knew as hate.

This book is beautifully written, with a compelling story. It presents the true feelings of many inmates that find themselves with lives filled with fear. The author present the harsh reality of prison life, but the book is full of hope and growth. It leaves the reader knowing that no matter how dark our adversities might be, there is still beauty to be found all around us.