While I do support prison reform and do understand there are a lot of issues prisoners have to face inside and outside... this book was not quite hitting the mark. The narrator came off entitled and delusional. Some of her actions were ridiculous and she felt like they were "justified" Throwing tvs out windows, attacking a judge, pouring milk into a nurses mouth... and the list goes on ... people were just trying to do their job and she was just bored. She had no justifiable purpose for doing so many of the things she did BUT STILL TODAY THINKS SHE DOES. I just had so many issues with this book.

Also, the writing structure made it hard for me to keep reading - long scrolling paragraphs lost my interest a few times.

Breakfast at Bronzefield offers a powerful glimpse into a world few see: riots; unethical medical prescribing; and prison barons – key figures behind prostitution and drug-smuggling.

It was very informative about various aspects of the prison system. Also, it highlights an important issue that prisoners are hardly rehabilitated. In fact, they are thrown back on the street without any resources or support after their time is served, which proves to be a challenge for those prisoners to start a new life without facing difficulties and discrimination.

Overall, an insightful look into the life of a prisoner.

Thank You to NetGalley and the author for this ARC!

Breakfast at Bronzefield is an unflinchingly honest look into the British prison system written by a young women who lived through its atrocities. Sophie Campbell provides us with an inside look at HMP Bronzefield, the UK’s largest women’s prison.

Breakfast at Bronzefield is a candid memoir of her time as a prisoner, she exposes the abuse that occurs in two women’s prisons in the UK, Bronzefield and Downview. As a fan of not only TV dramas such as 'Orange is The New Black' or ‘Wenworth' but also an avid true crime reader I was eager to begin reading Breakfast at Bronzefield by Sophie Campbell. The truth of the matter is sometimes fact is scarier then fiction. Breakfast at Bronzefield as it’s a very rare read that offers what life is really like in prison for a woman.

Breakfast is both provocative and thoughtprovoking. It is also eye opening and will leave you utterly unerved by the facts of what truly happens behind prison doors.

I recieved a digital copy of this book from the publisher via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

I am always interested in reading about the prison system and people's experiences during their time serving a sentence. As a law abiding citizen I hope that I will never get sent to prison because I don't think I would be able to cope, especially after reading Sophie Campbell's 'Breakfast at Bronzefield'.

Sophie Campbell (pseudonym) was incarcerated at HMP Bronzefield for grievously bodily harm and assaulting a police officer. She is an educated young black woman and is a minority in the prison system, she details the unfairness and racism that goes on behind bars.

This is a very honest memoir it's not glorified and the author even acknowledge s the fact that her persona in prison changed...it had to or she would have been deemed weak and vulnerable leaving her as a target to the bent officers and other inmates.
Sophie doesn't shy away from the fact that she did some things in prison that wouldn't be acceptable outside prison, but inside it got her moved to a different block or segradation which is what she wanted.
She lets you understand how corrupt it is prison, with officers turning a blind eye, making up things that didn't happen and even officers having relationships with the prisoners.

The book focuses a lot on education and the fact that Sophie has been to university, whereas a lot of the women are illiterate. There is lots of courses for the women to get an education but it's poorly run and women are made to feel ashamed for trying to better themselves.

Sophie is very determined never to go back to prison and become a statistic. It's her determination that makes her succeed. The probation officers are not helpful with housing and giving just under £50 it's no wonder so many women reoffend.

This is a very insightful memoir on HMP Bronzefield and HMP Downview where Sophie was transferred to. It has a great balance of subjects and statistics. Sophie sometimes comes across as 'stand offish' but actually reflecting on it she is very strong woman, she knows that is only her looking out for herself and she must do everything it takes.
Definitely recommend reading.

Thank you for my ARC Sorry but unfortunately due to recent events I have lost my reading mojo. When it returns this book will be top of my list and I will leave my review in the usual places

An amazing eloquently written true life story. Sophie Campbell, a pseudonym, gives an honest account of her time in prison. At the age of 14 she raised the money to pay for GCSES. She managed to get a scholarship to study for her A levels. Her home life had not been a bed of roses. Both parents were into drugs. Sophie decided to cut her family out of her life. Sophie tells her story leaving nothing out. Sophie is sent to prison, firstly on remand whilst waiting for her sentence. She is sent to the notorious female prison Bronzefield and then Downview. Sophie quickly learns the ropes. Drugs are rife, most of the prison wardens are bent. She explains why she gets herself into trouble. It's for survival and if she wants to be listened to by the prison officers. There are always the ongoing battles between the women. Life in prison is not as cushy as some people think. She gives the reader loads of facts and figures which she has backed up in bibliographic references at the end. It is evident as I read it that things need to change in the womens prisons. There is very little help to educate yourself. No access to the internet. As she comes up to her release date she starts to see various people from different organizations that should help her when she gets out. Finding her somewhere to live. Without an address on discharge you will be readmitted. It is not divulged why she is in prison, apart from the fact that she was in for GBH, Grievous Bodily Harm. Because of this she is considered dangerous and is on MAPPA (Multi agency public protection arrangements), meaning they should find her accommodation. They are discharged with the grand sum of £46, which most prisoners will spend this getting to see their probation officer who is usually miles away and has to be seen on the day of discharge. Needless to say they didn't find her anywhere. She gave her dad's address and went to stay there until she could get a room somewhere. Her dad had not changed. This womans courage and tenacity is incredible. Statistics are high that offenders will reoffend. This was not on Sophies radar. To find out how this courageous lady managed two years in prison and then came out and carried out what she wanted to do, a degree, read this brutally honest book. I admire her and I loved the book. I wish her every success in the future. Thank you to the author and NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was an eye-opening account of the bleak and unflinchingly painful works inside female prisons; covering a wide range of issues including assault, education, race, sexuality, gender, bureaucracy, homing and social issues, and drugs, there are certainly a lot of hefty topics to get through.

I already had a lot of thoughts about the prison system in general, but this completely lifted the lid on just how unsupportive and borderline dangerous this system is ran, and certainly unproductive in helping inmates in their reformation and reintegration back into society.

I loved the way this was written; Ms Campbell not only draws from her own personal experiences but clearly well-researched factual information to truly show how this system fails inmates. My only criticism would be that sometimes the story loses its chronological order, which means that the timeline can sometimes appear inconsistent and confusing.

This is a gritty, no-holds-barred account of life inside the complex prison system, and it is a tremendous achievement to Ms Campbell’s spirit that she has managed to escape and improve her life in the process.

Find my full review on my blog: http://thatbookishgem.com

This was such an insightful read. Despite some of the content and the subject matter I enjoyed it. Sophie, the author, although not her real name, finds herself in prison. She is detained in Bronzefield women's prison, the largest female prison in the UK. We are not give the details of her crime, but we are given plenty of information of her life inside and of the treatment she endures as she perilously documents all she witnesses happening around her during her time there. She had a tough childhood, raised in a home where substance abuse was common place. She was no angel and described many incidents where she used bad behaviour and manipulation to get her own was in prison. Her account highlighted the shortcomings of the UK prison system, a system that we are well aware of its need for reform. Rehabilitation is practically non existent and inmates and expected to behave, do their time and are then released into society again without any coping skills or training to help improve their societal existence. I learned a lot from this book. It provided plenty of food for thought.

This is a bold and honest book describing the author's experiences as an inmate at HMP Bronzefield. One of the things I really admired about it is that, in addition to sharing her story, the author uses the book as a call to arms, raising awareness of the many flaws in the prison system and highlighting the ways in which women become forgotten within it. It will give you a lot to think about, and it's made all the more effective by the author's own openness.

I have really mixed feelings about this. I have read some other books about the women's prison system that also show the injustice. However the author didn't cover herself in glory, the prison staff were portrayed badly but she comes across just as bad as them and doesn't seem to feel any remorse. She seems relatively privileged in comparison to other female prisoners. I really struggled to finish this book but am appalled by some of the things she says.

Thanks to NetGalley for the opportunity to read this book. I am afraid to say that for me it never really got off the ground. I have not given up on it and may return at a later date or maybe not. There are so many of this type of book "show and tell" or "real life stories" available now but compared to many of those I have read it lacked something although I am not sure what exactly.

As much as I love reading books like this on the inside of prisons, this one was slightly different. I loved hearing the stories of what sophie and the other prisoners got up to but it went into statistics and what actually happens that we never hear about or is never on the news. As much as it opens our eyes to how prisoners are being treated by the police, courts and guards etc it also shows what the prisoners themselves get up when they dont get their own way or get pushed around which doesnt help matters either lol a good insight into the other side of the bars, chapters were a bit long but other than that a good read

Absolutely loved this memoir. Such a necessary book to give us a peek into the life of a prisoner from the inside. Well written and powerful. Pick up this amazing book and become lost in a world we normally don't see. Happy reading!

Breakfast at Bronzefield is a memoir by Sophie Campbell, a psydonym, of her time incarcerated in Bronzefield Prison.

This is such an honest account into the prison system and describes the injustice, politics and daily struggles of life within a women prison. Sophie doesn’t shy away from exposing details of her time here, even if this doesn’t reflect her in the best light. I felt an emotional connection to her even without ever being in a situation like this.

Sophie highlights the little or no support available to women in terms of rehabilitation with a lot of time going to male prisoners, which highlights the high return rate of prisoners.

This is a honest and passionate insight in to lie within a women prison and it discusses topics that need to be discussed further in order to help a seemingly never ending cycle.
Thank you to Netgalley and Sophie Campbell books for my Arc in exchange for an honest review.

Firstly I want to start by thanking the author for getting in touch about this book #gifted, I love a memoir and after reading a book about female prisons earlier in the year I wanted to learn more.
The is a memoir of 'Sophie's' time in Bronzefield prison, we know her crime, but not the ins and outs and I think this was deliberate so it didn't define her as a person and no judgement could happen that may take away from the message within this book.
This is not just a memoir, but we find out stats about females in prison, their rehabilitation struggles as well the ins and outs of everyday life. We learn the tough choices some prisoners have to take to get by and the lack of any support shown to them on release.
I found this fascinating, although at times it did feel a bit repetitive, but when you are stuck within the same walls for years, I imagine it felt that way for Sophie too!
I would recommend reading this, to learn more and I liked the suggestions Sophie spoke about to improve the chances for prisoners and female ones specifically

I couldn’t wait to read Breakfast at Bronzefield by Sophie Campbell. Many of us are curious about what goes on in a women’s prison, aren’t we? Who isn’t a fan of those gripping TV shows, ‘Prisoner', 'Orange is The New Black' or ‘Wenworth'?

Sophie holds nothing back in this candid memoir of her time as a prisoner, she exposes the abuse that occurs in two women’s prisons in the UK. She is a well educated and a fiercely determined woman who is not going to let this bump in the road stop her to lead the life she wants.

The author is honest to admit in prison she used physical violence to settle grievances with prison officers and fellow inmates, she believed in standing up for her rights. Sometimes it was a struggle, as basic human necessities would be denied to her just because an officer held a grudge and this would be when she would lash out.

Corruption, lack of education services available in prison, stereotyping, lack of food, prison wages, violence and drugs are some of the subjects discussed in the book.

Sophie reveals there is a huge lack of support, to assist with accommodation and finances when the women are released which is part of the problem many of the women end up back in prison.

A intriguing and eye opening look at the UK prison system backed up with informative statistics and intensive research which must of taken a considerable amount of effort and time to document.

I wish to thank the author Sophie Campbell & Netgalley for an advanced copy of Breakfast At Bronzefield in return for an honest review. Sophie I sincerely wish you the best of luck with your writing career and hope you find it successful.

Don’t be fooled by the stunning cover design, Breakfast at Bronzefield is anything but a fluffy read,..

Sophie (not the author's real name) discusses her experience inside one of the UK's most notorious women’s prisons. Noting that she was made to sign an NDA on her way into the building she writes about her experiences in an exposé of the criminal justice system and female prisons in Great Britain.

She gives an honest portrayal of the systematic failures women in this country must endure and attempt to survive whilst completing their sentences. In address these failures she reminded me of Cash Carraway and 'Skint Estate' in that the poorest people on the lowest rung of the social ladder are given the least support when they truly need it. Sophie hammers home the adequate lack of assistance given to prisoners, especially due to the Conservative party cuts made by David Cameron's cabinet.

This book will make you angry; the female prison system in the UK needs to be overhauled and holistic support given to these women who have suffered on the inside.

An interesting read about the reality, prejudices and institutionalised neglect inside women's prisons. The style of writing lends an authenticity to the messages being given. This isn't a glossy, smoothly-written memoir being used to make a political point. Instead it looks and sounds like the ordinary words of an ordinary woman [albeit one who achieves extraordinary things] and strikes true as a result.

I enjoyed this book. It was interesting to learn a little bit about the prisons in the UK and how they differ from the USA prisons. there was a few terms i wasn't familiar with which I'm assuming was slang, but most of the time either the author explained the slang or it was relatively easy to figure out the meaning.

The author's account of her time in prison in the U.K.'s largest women's prison is eye-opening. If she hadn't taken the risk in writing this, these injustices wouldn't be public knowledge. The system doesn't even provide these women with the most basic of rights. It was heartbreaking to read knowing that so many have been failed by this system.