Growing up, some kids may have heard the phrases ‘This is your last chance! I mean it!’ from frustrated parents threatening to turn the car around because the siblings are fighting over a toy or to the teenagers for sneaking into the house just a little past curfew, principals from pranks. But in the book Last chance in Texas, by John Hubner, a book written about violent juvenile delinquents attempting to turn their life before it plummets and they head to the Adult Jail. In this case, those toddlers fighting over a toy is petty. Last Chance, twists your guts and emotions as they navigate a labyrinth of childhood trauma and admitting to the crimes of assault, theft and murder. It takes place in a small town in Texas at a school. In this book
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Their last shot at redemption, a chance at life, the last chance to be better than they were in the past. Instead of the standard handcuffs and cold cells, this book takes place in a school, called Giddings with cottages in lieu of cell blocks, in Texas. But, in order to get into Giddings, those younglings had to have committed crimes that were violent and atrocious (such as murder, rape, shooting other people and injuring them so severely.) It’s a place where with the help of therapists, therapy practices and each other can grow out of becoming a label and a cliché of the juvenile delinquent. Some of those delinquents, called students by peers, therapists and teachers, have to crack and crumble walls created by the past childhood and crimes to get to the future. Those students are the main characters and they have a story. In last chance in Texas, some of these characters had a rough childhood and often later turned to drugs, sex or crime to escape or feel some sort of control or pride or even what was considered ‘affection’. For boys it was getting high, or joining gangs or even doing drugs to make a connection. For the girls, most had been abused in the past ranging from physical to sexual; instead of healing they lashed out or taken to a life of crime to feel something. There are two main characters that hit those points. Ronnie and Elena, both of which had rocky
Their last shot at redemption, a chance at life, the last chance to be better than they were in the past. Instead of the standard handcuffs and cold cells, this book takes place in a school, called Giddings with cottages in lieu of cell blocks, in Texas. But, in order to get into Giddings, those younglings had to have committed crimes that were violent and atrocious (such as murder, rape, shooting other people and injuring them so severely.) It’s a place where with the help of therapists, therapy practices and each other can grow out of becoming a label and a cliché of the juvenile delinquent. Some of those delinquents, called students by peers, therapists and teachers, have to crack and crumble walls created by the past childhood and crimes to get to the future. Those students are the main characters and they have a story. In last chance in Texas, some of these characters had a rough childhood and often later turned to drugs, sex or crime to escape or feel some sort of control or pride or even what was considered ‘affection’. For boys it was getting high, or joining gangs or even doing drugs to make a connection. For the girls, most had been abused in the past ranging from physical to sexual; instead of healing they lashed out or taken to a life of crime to feel something. There are two main characters that hit those points. Ronnie and Elena, both of which had rocky