A roadmap from the gutters of society to respectability and success. For those seeking a straight life, it describes what they must change about themselves, and the hazards they must avoid. For anyone interested in crime, punishment, and rehabilitation, it provides an unprecedented look into the minds of offenders. Bluntly acknowledges the existence of unfairness and hypocrisy in society, but not with bitterness or self-pity. Rather it puts these in perspective and shows how the individual offender can change and build a respectable life, in spite of the barriers and pitfalls. The author has seen criminal justice and corrections all the way from the cold floor of a solitary cell to the courtroom as an expert witness. Without mincing words and with a touch of humor, he turns this experience to the service of both the offender and society as a whole.