Keri Blakinger wanted to be proud of herself. After years of persistence and practice, she mastered the triple salchow and the triple toe loop. But she catastrophized- not believing she deserved figure skating success. Sure, she had executed the jumps, but she didn’t feel the jumps and instinctively knew the skill was fleeting, not wired in her muscle memory. She focused on working and training harder.

Two years later, she competed at the United States Figure Skating Championships or the “Nationals” as they were called by insiders. Keri was encouraged by a fifth place showing but her partner Mark Ladwig was dissatisfied and abruptly quit their partnership. “His ambition” she wrote in Corrections in Ink: A Memoir “had become my Olympic-sized tragedy”. (Ladwig went on to participate in the 2010 Winter Olympics with partner Amanda Evora and finished tenth. The pair would win two U.S. national silver medals).

Her consolation prize, which pleased her parents, was Harvard Summer School. But away from home she fell into a sickly depression as she relived Ladwig’s rejection over and over. Snorting lines of Adderall, smoking pot, screwing high school dropouts, sucking down Ecstasy until it numbed her failure was the norm. Keri made friends, picked over lovers, erased who she had been, trashed every goal she once had. “Instead of getting myself together” she wrote about her plight “I fell further apart, propelled by more self-hatred than I knew I had.”

While Corrections in Ink: A Memoir is an immersive account of the self-loathing athlete, it also clarifies addiction for the untutored. It’s not about what you are doing to yourself but rather how you feel about yourself. When Keri was competing, she was also huffing glue and vomiting and starving herself. But once her figure skating dream crashed, she was still self-harming. Throughout her sadness, her mother, who is sparsely mentioned, was distant and oddly uninvolved. One time she witnessed Keri vomiting up stir fry and all she said about her daughter’s despair was a meek “I heard you.”

Arrested for possessing $150,000 worth of heroin, Keri’s story takes a disturbing turn in Tompkins County Jail. Keri is a celeb- that once upon a time figure skater from the suburbs. Now she’s notorious, a heroin addict and dealer who is spied on by prison guards whenever she removes her tampon.

The prison system, as Blakinger notes, is overrepresented by black inmates but not Tompkins County Jail, a very white place. While Keri tries her best to assimilate, Tompkins is still jail, a friable place with inconsistent medical care, spotty legal advice, and capricious punishments. And women from a variety of circumstances are thrown together in a peculiar mix.

There is Tawny who looks like Katy Perry. She’s a heroin addict frequently in the system. Lesbian Susan is in her sixties and did tours in the merchant marines and had a lot of DUIs. Brandy is the rule breaker, a resentful loud talking, obscenity throwing hell raiser. Theresa is Blakinger’s first “cellie” but is transferred rather quickly followed by Deb, a nervy alcoholic who lacks remorse, boasting about drinking when she gets released. Jenny is a crosswording partner who has a keen wit and knows “how to jail.”

Also centered are the men who enabled Keri’s drug use, her behavioral co-conspirators. Geeky Teflon taught Keri the ropes of being a dealer and she discovered it was better than turning tricks. She was in love with Hootie for three years: he introduced her to regular things like Saturday Night Live and the rapper Ice Cube and she introduced him to heroin. After Hootie broke up with her, his mother suggested Keri apply to college again. She did: Cornell.

Todd was an angry, crack loving boyfriend she couldn’t stop fighting with. They sold heroin together. Alex was her fragile cokehead, crack addicted boyfriend fourteen years older who she married in prison. None of the men she loved could save her behind bars. Anxiety was her companion.

Ever watchful of her release date, and terrified of being thrown into solitary, Keri artfully limped through her days, trying not to be noticed. In one jail she was someone’s girlfriend. In another, someone’s confidant. She learned to create makeup out of colored pencils and how to horde toilet paper. She dreaded her hair with glue and then had it cut off against her will.

Early in the book and while depressed Blakinger tried to kill herself by jumping off a bridge, a 98-foot drop. It was a reckoning of sorts, a way to dissolve her body because her soul was dead. By sheer luck she landed on her feet and walked away with her life intact, a metaphor of the prison experience yet to come. Deadly but survivable.

We’re conditioned to believe that athletes overcome their failures by willfulness, but Keri Blakinger reminds the reader some have a spotty relationship with themselves. For her part, she spent years self-loathing partly because she never received the message about losing with grace. Losing was an indictment on her shortcomings and while that centers the narrative in Corrections in Ink: A Memoir it isn’t the whole story of Keri Blakinger and to a lesser extent it isn’t the whole story of women in prison.

The art of breaking occurs at any age and is about having the fortitude and self-reliance to put yourself back together again after a life of blight and emotional pain. If flowers can mature in a pit of darkness, women in prison can too.

Corrections in Ink is a dark, somewhat gritty memoir of what it is like to be in prison, and what it is like to survive after prison. It is a hopeful story, while also showing what can happen to prisoners in a real light, and how someone can end up there. This was so eye opening to me. I was somewhat shocked by some of the stories of policies jails/prisons have, and how many sections there are for different types of prisoners. I am grateful to Keri for writing this story, sharing her input and recognizing her privilege while also doing something about issues she found out about. I cannot imagine the strength all of this takes and genuinely applaud her for it.
Thank you to St. Martin’s Press for the paperback copy and to Netgalley for my e-arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

I tried about 20% of this one but it just wasn't working for me- I was kind of bored with the early childhood stuff - after talking with some trusted sources, I don't think this book is for me.

A remarkable story and a life lived to go on to saving those lost in prison from the recklessness of others. It's hard to read and harder to grasp what this woman, Keri, went through and the tragedies she lived through to pick herself up and work for others. A remarkable woman she is. Thank you @NetGalley@StMartinsPress@CorrectionsinInk

We need more stories by and about incarcerated people in the U.S. I hope that Keri Blakinger’s memoir sees as much success as Piper Kerman’s Orange Is the New Black, because it could open the door for more people to have their stories in the mainstream.

Blakinger acknowledges that her story is that of a white woman with many privileges. But going into this read, I think it’s important to know that Blakinger has established herself as an investigative journalist and held power to account in a criminal justice system that abuses its power with impunity.

Blakinger’s experience as an inmate informs her work as a journalist and writer, and in reading her memoir, I learned more about the systematic dehumanization that occurs on a daily basis is jails and prisons.

I am disinclined to frame this memoir as a redemption story, because people in jails and prisons should not have to prove their worth as human beings.

This is just one person’s experience. You can read more of Blakinger’s work with The Marshall Project, where she is “the organization’s first formerly incarcerated reporter.”

I received a digital advance reader copy of this book from NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press in exchange for an honest review.

A memoir of Keri's life growing up living life to the max as she was intensely involved in competitive figure skating. She rotates the story between her growing up days and life in prison and how she got there. Drugs. Lots of drugs.

This is a heartbreaking memoir to listen to and watch the choices that she makes giving herself away to addiction. As she tells her story she asks for no pity and is not shamed by her past. She tells you how it is being in jail, in prison, the lifestyle, the system in general. She does a great job of keeping it real yet mildly explaining the roughness of prison.

This is a story of overcoming, of redemption, of trying, of doing, of becoming. Like each of us do in our own trials in our own lives.

Thank you to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the advance e-copy in return for my review.

Thank you @stmartinspress for sending me an ARC!

Keri Blakinger was well on her way to the Olympics in figure skating when her world came crashing down around her. From eating disorders to drug abuse, Keri fell from the national stage into a life behind bars. She gives us an honest look at her experience in the prison system with a vulnerability and rawness I haven’t read before. We all know that the prison system is littered with problems, but Keri reveals some incredibly eye-opening details that were hard to read.

After her release, Keri finished her degree and got a job in journalism. Those investigative skills are what she brings to this book.

This book is not for HSP’s, but if you are looking to read a memoir of a woman who was able to do a full 180, this is the book for you!

Raw and eye-opening, this intimate memoir by Keri Blakinger about her time in jail and prison (there's a difference!), made me feel so many things. Anger, sadness, frustration, and, ultimately, inspiration.

In the early 200os, Keri was on track to enter the Olympics as a pairs figure-skater. After being ditched by her partner, she started down the slippery slope of drug addiction (all while being an honors student at Cornell). Hooked on heroin, she did many things to support her addiction, including committing crimes and pursuing sex work. She even attempted suicide.

Keri's arrest for felony drug possession and drug dealing was a national news story. She spent a total of two years in jail/prison. This no-holds-barred memoir shares it all through the framework of revelations of the inequities and atrocities of America's incarceration system (the United States has 4.2% of the world's population but houses 20% of its prisoners!). After prison, Keri became an investigative journalist and now works for The Marshall Project, reporting on American incarceration.

I was mesmerized by this book. Keri's storytelling abilities are top-notch but what's especially engaging is her ability to share the highs and horrific lows of prison life. Through the atrocities and dehumanizing treatment--women released early as an apology for being raped guards, a cavity search that included women forced to remove bloody tampons, a woman's month-long stint in solitary for unknowingly getting one-too-many piercings--Keri somehow managed to find hope, redemption, and her mission for when she got out. This book is a gut-punch but also offers hope. I'm so thrilled that Keri made it to the other side of addiction--and I'm also so grateful she's sharing her experience and using it to expose how much of a mess our country's incarceration system is. Read this--you won't be sorry.

Listen, I am not one to annotate books. Like, it actually bothers me when people highlight all over the pages and make notes. BUT I was given both a physical galley and the digital download of this one. And I found myself pulling up the digital version so that I could highlight passages that really resonated with me.

This memoir was very healing to me, not because I have ever been addicted to drugs or incarcerated, but because those feelings of hopelessness and wanting to take up less space in the world and be enough for everyone else were so hurtful to me in their own ways as I grew up. It was refreshing to hear such an honest and emotional story of survival.

Thank you for the opportunity to read this Netgalley ARC in exchange for an honest review.

What a beautifully written book. So very many emotions I felt. This book took me away from this crazy world and filled me with all the feels.

I loved the story. I loved how much I know about Bees.. Just amazing.

Corrections in Ink is the incredible memoir written by Keri Blakinger. In a raw and honest fashion, Keri Blakinger tells of her early years as a figure skater with a promising career. As a young girl fighting with eating disorders. As a young woman who becomes involved with drugs - both abusing and selling them. As a young woman who sold her body for drugs. As a young woman who was arrested with a large quantity of drugs. As a young woman who spent nearly two years behind bars. As a woman who had more than one gift, that of writing and that of advocacy.

In her incredible journey, Keri experienced the highest highs and the lowest lows, but she came out on top. In fact, with a job now as a reporter for multiple outlets, one who speaks for the rights of prisoners, while revealing flaws and corruption in a broken prison system, Keri is now a woman who has become a hero.

Keri's life was never easy. The expectation of perfection was what she struggled to achieve while on the ice, but it was this struggle that opened the doors to some of the tragic experiences she endured. However, this strong young woman never gave up on life (well, she did have a particularly sad experience along this vein), but she soldiered on, and now proves to be a fine example for anyone who rises above tragedy and hopelessness, proving to be a beacon of hope, strength and courage for anyone who reads her story.

Her life experiences were difficult to read, and the life she experienced behind bars was devastating and heartbreaking, but she kept a light shining. A light that would get brighter once she was on the other side of those prison bars. She got a second chance in life, one that she grabbed with both hands, and one who proves that anybody and everybody can be redeemed. She was and her light continues to shine.

Many thanks to St. Martin's Press and to NetGalley for this ARC for review. This is my honest opinion.

Please also enjoy my detailed YouTube video review - https://youtu.be/NBXINwaDMM0

Thank you so much @stmartinspress or the gifted advance reading copy and @macmillianaudio for the advance listening copy of Corrections in Ink.

This memoir, written and narrated by Keri Blakinger follows a decade in her life beginning as a teen when she was figure skating competitively and into her drug use that eventually landed her in jail. She spent two years in jails and prisions in New York State, meeting so many people and learning all their stories. After her release she became a reporter bring light to many issues that are often unseen.

I learned a lot from this memoir, and I think that was one of the goals of it. The difference between jails and prisons is one fact that sticks out (I like knowing details like this), and greatly appreciated the way the Blakinger tackled the issues that can exist in the systems.

She is very open about her truths, addiction, eating disorders, and homelessness stand out as major themes. Her open ness really helped me connect with the story ,I couldn't stop listening and finished it in a few days.

I highly recommend this one, especially the audio because books narrated by their authors are truly the best as audio books.

𝘙𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘦𝘹𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘰𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺!

Powerful, honest, raw, hard to read and fantastic. I wish I had more words to describe this story, it was ugly, beautiful and inspiring. A great memoir!

Thank you St. Martin's Press and NetGalley for this gifted copy.

𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗜𝗻𝗸 by Keri Blakinger released June 7, 2022.

https://www.instagram.com/booksandcoffeemx/

Dear Corrections in Ink,
How do I write a letter to a book as important as you are? There are not enough words to explain how raw and touching you are. Memoir writing has to be one of the most difficult stories to write. Keri takes a deep dive into the darkest, most sordid parts of her life, exposing the brutal truths of her time turning tricks and selling drugs, and the pain, fear and isolation she experienced in jail and prison. I have had one person in my life who has done time, and I had no idea what the day to day was like. Being able to see a small part of what was that like for Keri opened my eyes to the brutality of the prison system in our country. She also does a brilliant job of acknowledging the privileges that she had at her disposal and sharing her gratitude for that privilege. She shed light on the facts that if she were Black, none of the second (and third and fourth) chances she was given, never would have happened for her. I was astonished to learn that time in solitary does not actually count toward time served, and how the system is rigged to keep felons inside it. I had no idea the rules were so arbitrary and unclear and easy to break. You are a beautiful story about the broken system in our country, a symptom of a much larger problem, and how one woman is working to change it.

What a raw and emotional book! It was heartbreaking and at the same time uplifting. I found the addiction part a bit scary and it made parts of this book a bit difficult to read. . Keri’s journey is so beautifully written. She shows so much bravery, resilience, and awareness while depicting her development. I thought this was wonderful.

A well written, thoughtful, scary, but ultimately hopeful memoir. Blakinger appeared to have it all- athletic and academic success- but she didn't. She tipped off the podium and into the horrors of addiction. Prison changed her in ways she didn't fully understand at the time but in a way which has made her an important voice. She uses that voice here and elsewhere to tell the stories we turn away from- of incarcerated women. Many might pass this by thinking it's a different take on Orange is the New Black but it's more than that- it's deeper because of Blakinger's commitment to making change in the penal system. Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC. Excellent and important read.

When I first saw this book something about the title really spoke to me. Then when I realised what this book was actually about I was so excited to open it. It is a very interesting memoir about our narrator Keri Blakinger, as she talks about her drug addiction, mental health, as well as our failing prison systems. Like many other books about drug addiction this one starts off very slow until it spirals out of control and Keri is lost in a world that she doesn't recognise. When things go horribly wrong and Keri gets locked up behind bars her tales becomes more of caution than anger. I liked how Keri didn't sugar coat her jail experience and I liked how she didn't overhype it she just told it how it was for her, the bad experiences and the not so bad ones. This book was very well written and it is one to read for sure especially if you like novels with strong female characters. While the jail time was very rough on Keri I liked how she managed to show some of the positive situations she found herself in it made it much more realistic because not every day will be terrible. The prison system is broken and this book just goes to show how broken it really is. While most of us are lucky enough to never have to experience this I do feel bad for those who do. Very good read and I'm glad I got the chance to check it out it really opened my eyes to a situation I never thought I would have to see.

A fantastic memoir (narrated by the author) that dives into addiction, mental health and the broken prison system. Keri openly discusses her life experiences leading up to her time in jail and then her trajectory after her release. I love stories about second chances and forgiveness and this one was powerful, raw and wonderfully written.

I picked up Corrections in Ink thinking it would be another prison memoir or redemption story. Wow wow wow was I wrong. Don't think twice, just grab this one and read it yourself. It was incredible. Well-written, well-researched and absolutely infuriating. Five stars all the way.

In Keri Blakinger’s memoir, Corrections in Ink, she tells her story of competing as an elite athlete, her decline into drug addiction, her incarceration, and her recovery and journalism career. At times harrowing, the author does not hold back in describing the details of her experiences both as an addict and her time in the corrections system. She discusses the many abuses of people within prison, oftentimes people who desperately need medical attention or rehabilitation.

Corrections in Ink is gripping and well-written. It’s a great read for anyone interested in the criminal justice system or prison reform.