Racehoss: Big Emma's Boy

By Albert Race Sample and Albert Sample

Book Overview

Hell for Albert Race Sample was the Retrieve, a branch of the Texas State prison system reserved for the most incorrigible prisoners. A cotton plantation where men slaved from dawn to dusk under the cruel leadership of "Boss Band," it cracked the spirits of the weak and hardened the souls of the strong. For "Racehoss," as Sample was called, the Retrieve was a place to witness unbearable brutality -- which he recounts in awesome detail in the pages of this stunning book. It is the classic story of the son of a troubled mother, of a young man gone bad, and of his first tentative then tremendous steps toward reclaiming his own destiny. His ability to understand the forces that drove him to prison, and his devotion to helping others also see the light of change, earned Sample his release in 1972 and a full pardon in 1976. His story is gripping, powerful, and utterly real -- true testament to the strength of the human spirit.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0890154422
• ISBN13: 9780890154427
• Release Date: January 1984
• Publisher: Eakin Pr
• Length: 320 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.

Customer Reviews

a light in the darkest dwelling of the soul...

I am looking for this book which is now out of print I believe. Ordinarily I might overlook this subject matter... but, I was listening to NPR's Diane Rehm 25th anniversary show, in which she played various excerpts of past programs. Diane prefaced... "and the most moving interview for me was with Albert Race Samples" and then I heard this smallish quivering voice with a light Texas accent talking about his time in "the hole" in prison, about how one day (or night?) in the absolute blackness around him, a loneliness and desperation of the soul came upon him... he called out to God and was answered with a glimmer of light right in front of him... from then, he knew he was not alone. I was moved, as Rehm had been... and determined to try to find his book. I could only wish it would be available on CD and read by Mr. Samples himself.

Racehoss: Big Emma's Boy

I read this book for the first time back in 1997 and continue to find this book to be among the very best that I have ever read. Mr. Sample delivers his story in a hilarious yet touching manner. I recommend this as a must read for pretty much everyone.

Stephen King MUST have read this book!

In the mid 1980's I tuned into a repeat program on the local NPR affiliate in Washington D.C. Diane Rehm was the host of a repeat broadcast of an interview with the author. It was such an absolutely compelling interview with the man, now obviously (at that time) an elderly gentleman--that I had to go out right away and purchase the book. It was and still remains a book that embodies everything "Classic" literature is. King must have read this before writing "Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption"--and as good a short story and subsequent movie as it was--Race Hoss:Big Emma's Boy is the ultimate real deal. Having heard the interview with the author, I am at a distinct advantage to analyze both the man and his writing. There are simply no superlatives to describe either. God Bless Albert Race Sample--thank you for a book that hopefully be filmed just as it is written. If approached honestly, it would be the finest portrayal of prison life as well as life as a young black man in the Deep South to date.

Where's the movie studios, anyway?

I am ordering Racehoss to send to my brother in prison. I just hope he reads it. SOMETHING has got to wake that boy up......Albert Race Sample was very courageous in sharing his story. Once in a while a book comes along that really makes you think, and this is one of tham. Congrats, Racehoss.