Got this free from Amazon by using tokens on a Kelloggs cereal packet - great offer! I loved the film with Nicole Kidman about Bangkok Hilton so this immediately appealed to me. Will be added to my TBR pile which is ever growing, but will hopefully be read sooner rather than later

I have read this before sending off as NSSEB (Not So Secret Easter Bunny) book. Hope you don't mind that I read it first...but I had been meaning to read it for a while so I took the opportunity.

A good read, although some bits seem a little self indulgent to me but I guess having been through what she did I am not surprised she felt the need to recount how depressed she felt. Having said that, it is an optimistic book in the way it is written as she was pardoned (says on back cover - not giving anything away!) and her family didn't reject her despite everything. Worth reading and reminded me a lot of the TV film Bangkok Hilton with Nicole Kidman which I watched along time ago now. I may have to have a search for it!

Anyway, enjoy the book and the extra's too! Have a nice Easter!

Received from Olliebear as my NSSEB present.
Thank you!!

I finished reading this book this morning, and thought it was an extremely interesting read. I haven't seen the Nicole Kidman film, but am interested in autobiographies of interesting people and people who have been in interesting situations, which is why this was on my wishlist originally.

I found the book was an interesting read and a Sandra seemed to be open and honest about her situation and what had happened to her. What did irritate me slightly about her though was her constant comparison of herself to other criminals both in Thailand and in other territories around the world. To me it doesn't matter that the penalty for her crime in the UK would have been 18-24 months, or whether in America they consider 1 year in a Thai jail to be equal to 6 years in an American jail, meaning the sentence is reduced once home. In Thailand the minimum sentence is 25 years, which is what Sandra was (eventually) sentenced to, and the UK operates a 1-year for 1-year policy.

However, overall this was a good read. It's interesting how Sandra reflected on the move back to the UK, and her experiences in jails in this country (I'd be interested in getting the opinion of a friend of mine who is a prison governor on Sandra's experiences). I thought it was very moving when she realised that she couldn't even remember how to use a set of keys as she had been incarcerated for so long, and when she reflected on how much of her life she had lost (and when I compared it to all that I had achieved in the years she had been in jail).

This book should certainly be compulsory reading for anyone going travelling in that part of the world to fully understand the consequences of your actions (I think every parent should buy a copy for their "gap year" child!). Sometimes it's better to pick up the phone and ask for help and lose some pride, than take risks to resolve a situation yourself.

Thank you so much for this book, Olliebear. It will be continuing its journey to MoJeDenUK this weekend.

:-)

Release planned for Thursday, July 08, 2004 at BOOKRAY in n/a, n/a Controlled Releases.

Sent to MoJeDenUK (2nd class)

This book is going on a mini-ray. The participants are:

* MoJeDenUK
* torialouise
* alans-daughter

Received in the post today from GlasgowGal, thanks. I saw the TV film years ago and really enjoyed it (hadn't realised it was Nicole Kidman in the starring role) so I am looking forward to starting this book.

I misread Olliebear's posting. This book, of course, was not about the Nicole Kidman film but certain aspects were similar to it. I vaguely remember reading now about Sandra Gregory's plight when she was initially arrested and thrown to the wolves and at the time I felt quite sorry for her (even though what she did was incredibly stupid for someone who was purportedly very intelligent). In the book she comes across as a bit arrogant, opinionated and obnoxious (apart from that she was probably ok!) but then she later admitted that her personality changed as she matured and I guess prison matured her very rapidly! Prison life in the Bangkok Hilton certainly makes compelling reading and I'm sure I have recently read that executions are more common over there now. She was extremely lucky to get out of there alive...and in such a short space of time. She was transferred to Holloway then later to Durham and Cookham Wood. All sounded equally as hellish in different ways. I don't think just gap year students should be made to read this book, but I think this book should be placed in all the school libraries and the children (from early teens) made to read it! It may also turn them off taking drugs let alone supplying them or smuggling them out of Thailand!

Will post this off to Torialouise tomorrow or the weekend.

Arrived safely today - have couple of rings on the go bit will should be through those soon and looking forward to reading this!!

I couldn't put this book down - a totally compelling read. Although i'd agree that part of the book was quite self indulgent, Sandra managed to protray the situation she had been in in quite a subjective way, and never hid the fact that she was in fact guilty. I think the scariest part of the book for me was how she suffered in the British Prison System and how, dispite the mod cons of TV, phones, beds!! the conditions in some of the British jails, especially Durham, seem more primative than LardYao, "the Bangkok Hilton". A brilliant read, thanks for sharing. Off to alansdaughter now.

Arrived this morning, thank you torialouise. No more rings or rays on my shelf so may read it straight away.

A painfully honest book. Sandra Gregory certainly wasn't trying to endear herself to her readers, but she has matured through her terrible experiances and is a living testament of how not to behave in such a situation. I was glad that she toured, telling her story to young people, and I agree that the book should be a set work for all teenaged school children.
It was a compelling read; very moving and giving pause for thought. Thank you glasgowgal for telling me about it and making it into a bookray. As I am last on the list I will see if there are any takers for another ray and then if there is no interest I will pass it on to my son and his friends.

RABCK to hellie.

This arrived this morning - thankyou!
This is one of those books that I have picked up SO mnay times, but never been sure what I would make of it - I so want to read it, but I wonder if it might be one of those really emotional ones.....
THANKYOU for giving me the opportunity to read it!

well, I starte this last night, and have read the rest of it whilst in the bath for the past 2 hours almost - I really wanted to see second part of 'corrie' but just couldn't prise the book out of my own hands!
For all it is one I've thought I'd love to read but wouldn't get through, I had to keep reading to the end, and despite everything I found it compelling reading.
Just goes to show, one stupid mistake can change your life forever - it doesn't make you a bad person, just means you made wrong choices.
Her stories portray how truly horrific life in prison can be (in many ways this is reassuring - at least REAL criminals are being treated as they deserve to be) but it is indeed scary how Sandra was deemed a high security risk amongst murderers etc. How after smuggling a small amount of heroine you end up in taliing distance of Rose West is beyond me. Indeed it does all make you question the justice system - look at Sally-May (was that her name?) imprisoned though obviously innocent?
I think it confused my emotions though, in that I felt nothing but contempt for the crimes committed by other prisoners around Sandra - both in LardYao and when back home, but when she was describing deaths. children taken from their mothers, etc, especailly in YardLao, I was moved to tears at the sheer inhumanity of it all - despite the inhumanity of their own crimes. Now to me that makes no sense - maybe it was reading between the lines- as Sandra had hardened to it, and felt little emotion, maybe it brings it out of the reader....When she leaves other prisoners - again it is heart wrenching stuff, despite their own perpetrations.
What made no sense was how they'd been alerted to Robert, yet he got off - GRRRRRRRRR!
ANyway, I'll give too much away if I cary on. That said, as someone working in comprehensives, where we all know children as young as 11 take drugs these days, I am VERY glad she has taken her expriences to children, and think this book should be looked at in school to warn them how stupid drug use really is....
Thanks Alan's daughter for sharing this book - I feel it needs to be kept to release at next Newcastle meet rather than just released at random.............

This is what I love about Book Crossing. I never intended to read this book - I picked it up at a meet up and thought I'd take it away to save someone else having to carry it home. I did start to read, however, and was totally gripped. It is a great story and someone who does a really stupid thing, and has to live with the consequences. There are parts where I cried. Its one of those book that I will be urging people to read.