The Best Part of Prison

An unvarnished, deeply human account of one man’s time in prison . . . and his unexpected journey to healing, accountability, transformation, and redemption.

At 18, Jesse Crosson was considered a lost cause. Strung out on drugs, he committed a robbery and later a nonfatal shooting. For those choices, he was sentenced to 32 years—nearly twice as long as the maximum recommended by sentencing guidelines.

No one expected his story to end well. But for Jesse, prison was not the end. It became the beginning of a long path toward redemption.

In The Best Part of Prison, Jesse reveals how a system "meant to rehabilitate" so often alienates and destroys, describing both the daily brutality of incarceration and the added cruelty of surviving the COVID-19 pandemic behind bars. Across four prisons, shoulder to shoulder with people convicted of every imaginable crime, Jesse anticipated only the worst. Instead, he discovered teachers, friends, trauma survivors striving to heal, victims seeking repair, and even hardened lifers who became unlikely mentors. Within that crucible, he confronted what it means to cause harm, to make amends, and to rediscover humanity.

Now a pardoned advocate for criminal justice reform and the founder of the Second Chancer Foundation, Jesse shares a story that exposes the inequity of today’s justice system, champions rehabilitation and restorative justice, and demonstrates the redemptive power of accountability, education, and human connection.

Electric and deeply felt—from the slam of a cell door to the awe of seeing the night sky after 19 years—The Best Part of Prison reminds us that second chances are always possible, and that none of us are defined solely by our worst moments.