James Patterson: The writer of choice for some of today's best-read convicts. (Photo by Sue Solie-Patterson.)

The Browser pointed me toward an interesting article posted on the New York Public Library website, which is written by Jamie Niehof, an intern with the Correctional Services Program. The piece, “Controlled Chaos: A Day Working the Rikers Island Book Cart,” gives a behind-the-scenes look at contemporary book and periodical borrowing at NYC’s main jail complex. Based on this article, author James Patterson should be very pleased with himself. An excerpt:

“Getting books back from the prisoners and letting them pick out new ones is a bit of controlled chaos. We stood outside the iron door to the house with our cart and had two prisoners come out at one time, check off their returned book, and pick out a new one. Each prisoner is allowed one book and one magazine.

The most popular books are by far James Patterson’s novels, so popular in fact that we have to lock them up after book service because they tend to disappear. I wonder if James Patterson has any idea. National Geographic is the magazine of choice, and there is an entire box of them to choose from, some as far back as the early 80’s. Urban magazines and books were in high demand, with almost no supply.”