Within the pages of this book the reader can relive the birth and growth of the South Island of New Zealand’s main male offender facility.
From a near worthless and barren area of ground were built the foundations of a prison that would still be fully operational over a century later. The first book to be published about the history of Christchurch Men’s Prison – perhaps more well known as Paparua, this trip through time will let you see prison life through the eyes of both prisoners, prison staff and government officials.
The reader will see how Paparua Prison has moved on from being a “prison farm” with prisoners who were selected due to their being viewed as a low escape risk to the large institution that functions today. Through never before seen information and photographs from the New Zealand archives to front-page articles of newspapers of the day plus many other sources, this book is a major step forwards in getting to grips with the reality of prison life covering over a century of Canterbury history.
