Hard Time

By: Shaun Attwood

Narrated by: Randal Schaffer

Length: 12 hrs and 7 mins

Publisher's Summary

After a SWAT team smashed down stock-market millionaire Shaun Attwood's door, he found himself inside of Arizona's deadliest jail and locked into a brutal struggle for survival.

Shaun's hope of living the American Dream turned into a nightmare of violence and chaos, when he had a run-in with Sammy the Bull Gravano, an Italian Mafia mass murderer.

In jail, Shaun was forced to endure cockroaches crawling in his ears at night, dead rats in the food and the sound of skulls getting cracked against toilets. He meticulously documented the conditions and smuggled out his message.

Join Shaun on a harrowing voyage into the darkest recesses of human existence.

Hard Time provides a revealing glimpse into the tragedy, brutality, dark comedy, and eccentricity of prison life.

Featured worldwide on Nat Geo Channel's Locked-Up/Banged-Up Abroad Raving Arizona.

©2016 Shaun Attwood (P)2017 Shaun Attwood

Bad Ending.

the book just kinda abruptly ends. we spend 10+ hours listening, only to have an extremely anti climatic ending.

great

really details the unorthoxed treatment of prisoners in Phoenix, Az jail system. unbelievable and sad humans are treated like garbage

great listen and read

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, it is an account prison life that is unhindered by the sort of fears of retribution and ingrained social obstacles someone an American ex-con might have to face. Not to mention the extensive record of his converstions and letters.

What did you like best about this story?

It's brutal documenting of the nightmare that is "the carceral state".

What does Randal Schaffer bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

His voice and sensibility never annoyed me or took me out of the story.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

the description of the atmosphere in the jail after many men had been up for a week on meth was horrifying.

Not what I was expecting...

I found this to be the same story throughout
It was the same story over and over the whole book. Could've been told in 1 chapter.
Bummer.

My favorite jail story. Was it a flash in the pan?

I love the way Shaun Attwood adapted and hung in there in Sheriff Arpaio's hell. The system was designed to break a prisoner down to the point of admission to the greatest charges from the prosecutor - all without the expense or need for a trial.

Prisoners get bulled, railroaded, worn down and tricked into signing the prosecutor's deal. Through failing health, skin diseases and starvation, cockroach infestations, and the ever-present fear of sadistic violence, and the lonliness of lock downs coupled with the foul air except for rare times when inspectors are present, prisoners reach their individual breaking points.

The prosecutor files continuances, letting the system beat down the jailed inmate over an indefinitely extended time. Everybody signs and when they do, they implicate others. Arpaio's jail system appears to outsiders to be a deliverer of misery and justice.

I didn't know this went on anywhere in America. Sheriff Arpaio got the presidential pardon. It's big stuff with popular support. But people don't get the real information through the media available to them. People don't generally know what Arpaio is doing in their name or what good possibly comes of it.

I knew there were problems in the criminal justice system but nobody hipped me to this. Everybody with any knowledge about jail survival says the first rule is to stick to your race. But Attwood nearly gets himself badly injured with he sits with black inmates and teaches Chicano inmates. His woods don't like the way it looks.

Atwood became an activist, publishing a clandestine blog that has parents of inmates concerned and awakened into a meaningful force for change.

But there are other stories going on. What about the great girlfriend we came to admire? Did Atwood and his Sheriff Arpaio wear her out completely? What's with all the perves in prison when Attwood finally gets moved to it?

Is Attwood going to make sure his sequel becomes an audiobook, or is this where his fanbase quietly dies????

Does Attwood understand his responsibility to his listeners, those who for their own limitations are unable to read but must rely on authors to make their content accessible to us through audio format?

Attwood seems like that rare type who could have a variety of experiences in life and write a book on each, but all is lost if it's not an audiobook. A small but dedicated fanbase might be left to die on the vine. One doesn't recover usually from such a loss.

Nice read

It took me awhile to get into the book and started to see where we need to treat our prisoners better. Just because they're in for a crime, they too deserve humanity.

Tedious minutiae of his life in a prison

I couldn't finish this as it was just tedious details of the awfulness of the prison. It only deserved a magazine article summarizing the life in prison rather than something that was more akin to a diary that rapidly became uninteresting.

Gripping portrayal of life in USAs' toughest Jail!

I was dubious of how this audiobook would hold my interest. I was quickly enthralled! Mr. Atwood, an educated English stockbroker, makes it big in the stock market boom of the late '90s. His passion then turns to rave parties where he participates and funds the rapid growth of ecstasy in the Phoenix area. His success leads him into competing with Sammy "the Bull" Gravano for market share. Several scary incidents, the collapse of the stock market, and his fortune lead him to walk away from "the life" only to be implicated years later in a Phoenix PD undercover investigation. He was ID' by several arrested individuals leading police to label him as a kingpin and subject to life in prison.

The story of his arrest, the jail experience, and the effort by prosecutors to break him are tragic, funny, believable, and a must-read for an inside look at the Arizona Judicial and Penal systems.

A Great Listen!

fascinating story, narrator uses American accent

read Party Time Raving Arizona. decided to listen to book 2 after really enjoying author's various YOUTUBE CHANNELS. dissapointed Attwood didn't narrate these books. American accent reading an English man's story was confusing at times. going back to reading 3rd book.

Not bad - weird choice of a narrator

It took a while, had to listen to this book in segments separated by weeks, but I got through it and didn’t have to appeal to amable for yet another refund because of “sorry but I can’t take this narrator.” Not like it’s bad technique or style, it’s the match between tone and content. In this case, it’s dude no way would anyone make it through the life and death daily need to be a hard ass from hell prison routine with that voice. Not that I’ve been to prison, but I’ve been in life and this is the voice of Biff who plays badmitten with Mindy in The Hamptons. Anyway, the book itself - not bad.

Terrible narrator

After listening to 150 books, this narrator stands out as not fitting the story and its characters.

Best audio book I've listened too

This is the best true account I've ever listened to. A definite must read. Attwood is amazing wish his other 2 books in the trilogy where available on here

Intense but amazing

A pleasure to read and listen to, still can't believe its a true story. True Geordie Gang

Poor Choice of Narrator

Fascinating true story; slight marred by the droning commentary that loses listener concentration. Would have benefited with a narrator who had a bit more charisma.

Before Sean was in my home regularly.

An amazing story BUT, hearing Sean on his regular programmes and recognising his voice, now having an American read this was annoying. I'm sure the narrator is a very nice guy BUT he's not Sean. Having said that, I highly recommend this book.

gripping stuff

was a fantastic audible book well written and well read,
shauns story opens the doors to life in prison

loved it. five stars from me.

I'm definitely getting more of Shauns work. Fantastic insight into a place many wouldn't survive

Brilliant!!

Loved this book but unfortunately I found it really difficult listen to an American narrator. The book is written with English slang words and it doesn’t translate very well.

A very good detailed account of US jail.

A really enjoyable listen, and really well detailed account of time spent in a US jail.

Only real let down being the narrator was American and not British, so kinda throws you off a little bit considering it was written by a Brit.

Fantastic work Shaun

Absolutely love this trilogy of books, first heard his story on YouTube, I reccomend these