Little Criminals
- ISBN-10
- 1869796934
- ISBN-13
- 9781869796938
- Series
- Little Criminals
- Category
- Biography & Autobiography
- Pages
- 288
- Language
- English
- Published
- 2011-03-04
- Publisher
- Penguin Random House New Zealand Limited
- Author
- David Cohen
Description
A unique and powerful look at a New Zealand experiment in social welfare gone wrong. From the late 1950s to the mid 1980s, when most of them were closed down, the New Zealand government maintained 26 residences for children and teenagers. Some of those children had the bad fortune to come from families with large numbers of children and who couldn't cope financially. Plucking a child out and putting him in a home to ease the burden was seen as a solution. Other children in came from profoundly dysfunctional backgrounds or were profoundly dysfunctional themselves. Could putting them all together in close quarters, supervised by staff with mostly inadequate training, ever deliver a positive outcome? In this powerfully written book David Cohen, who himself spent time at Epuni Boy's Home in the 1970s, argues not. He tracks down former residents and staff members, many of whom argue that boys'-home stints led boys to, rather than away from, lives of crime. It also led some into abuse. Evocatively and originally written, Cohen's research takes him back to the era of moral panic about juvenile delinquency that drove the creation of the homes and traces the sea change in ideas about the care of troubled adolescents, especially Maori, who were hugely over-represented in the muster, that spelled their eventual demise. Totally gripping, it is a unique insider account of a failed experiment.
Get the book
Other editions
Similar books
-
Lullabies for Little Criminals: A Novel
By Heather O'NeillThe only show Isabelle ever wanted to watch was Barney Miller. The change in TV shows made a lot of kids cry. When you are a kid, if you watch The Jeffersons with your family at seven o'clock, it seems like a natural phenomenon, ...
-
Little Criminals with Big Hearts
By Luella ThomasI hope that Little Criminals with Big Hearts will encourage you to raise your children to be the best that they can be. Also, I recommend and encourage all parents to seek some type of spiritual guidance, as this can assist both you and ...
-
The November Criminals
By Sam MunsonFilled with classic adolescent reflection and an intriguing mystery, The November Criminals is “one of the funniest, most heartfelt novels in recent memory—a book every bit as worthy of Mark Twain and J.D. Salinger” (The Chicago ...
-
The Girl Who Was Saturday Night: A Novel
By Heather O'NeillNow, in The Girl Who Was Saturday Night, she returns to the grubby, enchanted city with a light and profound tale of the vice of fame and the ties of family.
-
Uncommon Criminals
By Ally CarterKat Bishop: Friend.
-
Little Criminals
By Kenneth LayeLittle Criminals
-
Wanted! Criminals of the Animal Kingdom
By Heather TekavecSlippery Slick, Queenie the Meanie, Lil’ Cupid — they’re all here in this hilarious book of animal case files, with rap sheets, mug shots and more for each “criminal.” They all stand accused of playing dirty, but with Detective X ...
-
The Big Book of Little Criminals
By Carl Sifakis, George HagenauerFrom penny-ante grifters to the minds behind the biggest heists in history, this glorious collection provides the stories behind some of the most outlandish criminal behaviour known to man. Illustrated throughout.
-
All Time Top 1000 Albums
By Colin LarkinThis volume acts as a reference to the 1000 top albums of all time.
-
The World's Dumbest Criminals: Outrageously True Stories of Criminals Committing Stupid Crimes
By HarperCollins Publishers LtdHilarious and outrageous, this book will make you shake your head and perhaps second-guess your own plans to commit petty larceny.