Overview

My life was the result of my crazy childhood. With these words began an extraordinary correspondence, between Roy Tester, a double-murderer serving a life sentence in the notorious Arkansas prison, Tucker Maximum Security Prison, and Doug Carnine, a meditation teacher and lay Buddhist minister on the other side of the country. In the letters that followed -- more than 700 over seven years -- these two men, along with three other prisoners at Tucker Max, developed a profound spiritual partnership that changed all of their lives. Saint Badass: Personal Transcendence in Tucker Max Hell tells the inspiring story of these unlikely friends in their own words, and follows their journey as they rediscover their humanity in one of the most inhuman places on Earth. Buddhist Synopsis: Saint Badass: Personal Transcendence in Tucker Max Hell is a memoir about bringing heaven down to hell. Drawing on an exchange of letters, Doug Carnine tells the story of his partnership with three murderers and an alleged rapist, about Buddhism and its practices of mindfulness and kindness, and how by adopting these practices, the prisoners transformed their lives. All four prisoners were housed in Tucker, Arkansas, at the notorious maximum-security prison featured in the Robert Redford movie Brubaker. In their letters, to Carnine, and sometimes to one another, the prisoners describe their unrelentingly abusive childhoods, their lives of violence and crime, their eventual submission to prison life, and their growing commitments to meditation and kindness. A suspenseful and moving drama unfolds as these prisoners join in partnership and experience glimpses of internal freedom. Each prisoner faces new crises in prison, including disabling illness, a brain tumor, a prison gang attack, family betrayal, medical abuse and harsh punishments for mild offenses. Yet through mindfulness and the blessings of kindness, each prisoner in his own way overcomes his crisis. The destructive forces of prison and the horror of the men's upbringings provide a dramatic contrast to their incongruously continuous acts of kindness and growing concern for the well-being of others. The journey chronicled in this book calls into question stereotypes about marginalized members of society and inspires hope for change. This story is about transformation -- that of the prisoners, and of the author, as he shares personal difficulties and learns from the courage and commitment of his prison friends. View the book trailer here: https: //youtu.be/TDUK_xepme4

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Reviews

Saint Badass isn't simply about the transformative power of sincere spiritual prac- tice. It demonstrates the impact of our practice on our environment and the people around us. These men have many reasons to be filled with hate, to be violent, and to be completely shut down given the lives they are leading in the bowels of the hell realm of our society, our prisons. And yet. They transform. One of them glows in the dark, I swear. Reading the book gave me hope. Their lives are proof of this. -- Geri Larkin, founding teacher, Still Point Zen Buddhist Temple and author, Stumbling Toward Enlightenment The practice of kindness dramatized in Saint Badass by prisoners with histories of heinous crime is deeply moving. A central figure in the book, who killed his mother and his father, brings to my mind/heart a sense of Greek tragedy and Shakespeare's heroes. If we all look deeply into our own hearts, I wonder how many of us have experienced, at moments, a murderous rage. I certainly have. Through their prac- tice of mindfulness and kindness, the suffering men who tell their stories in Saint Badass are transformed and find, at least at times, redemption. This is healing and inspiring for readers. If these prisoners can have moments of self-awareness, if they can practice mindfulness, if they can express kindness to each other and them- selves, so can I. So can we all. I urge you to read this beautiful book. -- Barbara Gates, author, Already Home: A Topography of Spirit and Place and editor-in-chief, Inquiring Mind Journal Make no mistake, Saint Badass is an incredibly gritty read which is often uncomfortable, but that is also its great strength. No punches are pulled, the prisoners are allowed to speak their minds without censorship, and that makes the resulting transformations even more compelling - and inspiring - than they would have been otherwise. Whilst readers won't always like what they read in Saint Badass, they cannot fail to be transformed by it. We commend Doug for the encouragement and guidance that he has given to his Tucker Max correspondents, and we thank him - as well as Cody, John, Roy and Tad - for sharing their experiences in this book. -- Excerpt from Buddhist Book Reviews Saint Badass isn't simply about the transformative power of sincere spiritual prac- tice. It demonstrates the impact of our practice on our environment and the people around us. These men have many reasons to be filled with hate, to be violent, and to be completely shut down given the lives they are leading in the bowels of the hell realm of our society, our prisons. And yet. They transform. One of them glows in the dark, I swear. Reading the book gave me hope. Their lives are proof of this. -- Geri Larkin, founding teacher, Still Point Zen Buddhist Temple and author, Stumbling Toward Enlightenment The practice of kindness dramatized in Saint Badass by prisoners with histories of heinous crime is deeply moving. A central figure in the book, who killed his mother and his father, brings to my mind/heart a sense of Greek tragedy and Shakespeare's heroes. If we all look deeply into our own hearts, I wonder how many of us have experienced, at moments, a murderous rage. I certainly have. Through their prac- tice of mindfulness and kindness, the suffering men who tell their stories in Saint Badass are transformed and find, at least at times, redemption. This is healing and inspiring for readers. If these prisoners can have moments of self-awareness, if they can practice mindfulness, if they can express kindness to each other and them- selves, so can I. So can we all. I urge you to read this beautiful book. -- Barbara Gates, author, Already Home: A Topography of Spirit and Place and editor-in-chief, Inquiring Mind Journal

Make no mistake, Saint Badass is an incredibly gritty read which is often uncomfortable, but that is also its great strength. No punches are pulled, the prisoners are allowed to speak their minds without censorship, and that makes the resulting transformations even more compelling - and inspiring - than they would have been otherwise.Whilst readers won't always like what they read in Saint Badass, they cannot fail to be transformed by it. We commend Doug for the encouragement and guidance that he has given to his Tucker Max correspondents, and we thank him - as well as Cody, John, Roy and Tad - for sharing their experiences in this book.-- Excerpt from Buddhist Book Reviews Saint Badass isn't simply about the transformative power of sincere spiritual prac- tice. It demonstrates the impact of our practice on our environment and the people around us. These men have many reasons to be filled with hate, to be violent, and to be completely shut down given the lives they are leading in the bowels of the hell realm of our society, our prisons. And yet. They transform. One of them glows in the dark, I swear. Reading the book gave me hope. Their lives are proof of this.-- Geri Larkin, founding teacher, Still Point Zen Buddhist Temple and author, Stumbling Toward Enlightenment The practice of kindness dramatized in Saint Badass by prisoners with histories of heinous crime is deeply moving. A central figure in the book, who killed his mother and his father, brings to my mind/heart a sense of Greek tragedy and Shakespeare's heroes. If we all look deeply into our own hearts, I wonder how many of us have experienced, at moments, a murderous rage. I certainly have. Through their prac- tice of mindfulness and kindness, the suffering men who tell their stories in Saint Badass are transformed and find, at least at times, redemption. This is healing and inspiring for readers. If these prisoners can have moments of self-awareness, if they can practice mindfulness, if they can express kindness to each other and them- selves, so can I. So can we all. I urge you to read this beautiful book.-- Barbara Gates, author, Already Home: A Topography of Spirit and Place and editor-in-chief, Inquiring Mind Journal Saint Badass isn't simply about the transformative power of sincere spiritual prac- tice. It demonstrates the impact of our practice on our environment and the people around us. These men have many reasons to be filled with hate, to be violent, and to be completely shut down given the lives they are leading in the bowels of the hell realm of our society, our prisons. And yet. They transform. One of them glows in the dark, I swear. Reading the book gave me hope. Their lives are proof of this.-- Geri Larkin, founding teacher, Still Point Zen Buddhist Temple and author, Stumbling Toward Enlightenment The practice of kindness dramatized in Saint Badass by prisoners with histories of heinous crime is deeply moving. A central figure in the book, who killed his mother and his father, brings to my mind/heart a sense of Greek tragedy and Shakespeare's heroes. If we all look deeply into our own hearts, I wonder how many of us have experienced, at moments, a murderous rage. I certainly have. Through their prac- tice of mindfulness and kindness, the suffering men who tell their stories in Saint Badass are transformed and find, at least at times, redemption. This is healing and inspiring for readers. If these prisoners can have moments of self-awareness, if they can practice mindfulness, if they can express kindness to each other and them- selves, so can I. So can we all. I urge you to read this beautiful book.-- Barbara Gates, author, Already Home: A Topography of Spirit and Place and editor-in-chief, Inquiring Mind Journal

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