For more than ten years, Commonwealth students, chaperoned by Ms. Haber, have volunteered their time to support Prison Book Program, a Quincy-based nonprofit that supplies incarcerated people with interest-specific books and reading materials. The organization recently featured Commonwealth, highlighting our history with PBP and reflections from some of our students on how their volunteer work has shifted their perspectives. You can read the expanded version of their interview below. Kudos to the many students who volunteer throughout the year, and especially to Ms. Haber for her continued leadership!

How did you hear about Prison Book Program, and what drew you to volunteer?

Ms. Haber: Back in 2014 our students were putting together a day of volunteering opportunities. One student had found PBP and arranged for a dozen students to take a shift. I was in the middle of grading papers that week and said I could chaperone, but only if I could work in a corner. With all that activity, and all those books, I found I couldn’t just do my work, and so I started to read the letters. Shortly after I brought my husband and our kids and then we started coming four or five times a year. It became so meaningful to me that I started looking for ways to get our students more involved, and finally we were able to set up a standing session, typically the first Saturday of every month during the school year. We usually come with nine students and a chaperone, but we could easily send more—there’s almost always a waiting list! Over the summer, when I try to come more regularly myself, I sometimes run into our students and even our alums.

What have you learned about incarceration that has surprised you through this volunteer work?

Caro ’27: When I first signed up to go to PBP, I was nervous about the type of people we would be serving. I spent a lot of time worrying about what kinds of crimes they had committed. But when I started volunteering, I realized that I had been putting their labels first and not thinking of them as people, and people everywhere like to read. Even in prisons, they read a lot of the same books as I do. That was really eye-opening for me.

Koki ’26: Even though we are quite literally sending books to prisons, I am still consistently surprised by the level of control and surveillance that the state is able to impose on these adult citizens' lives. Many if not most prisons absolutely forbid that there be any sex/nudity or descriptions of violence in the books we send. The vast majority of people in prison will one day be released back into the real world—meaning they will once again encounter PG-13 and up content. I find it crazy that we are forced to content-restrict these books as though they were going into the hands of middle schoolers, rather than adults who deserve the dignity and autonomy to read about adult themes. This is an aspect of the criminal legal system that I never would've considered without PBP. 

Kate ’26: Some of the restrictions on what books we can send are insane to me: the fact that Florida only allows a few coloring books and all others are banned quite frankly makes no sense.

What have you learned about the lived experience of people who are incarcerated through your involvement at Prison Book Program?

Caro: One thing that stuck with me was seeing the types of books people asked for. So many people reached out for how-to books or books on religion or books on learning a new language or skill. Seeing how people want to use their time to keep learning makes me feel inspired to keep learning.

Kate: A lot of incarcerated people are looking for informational books: dictionaries (especially foreign-language ones), books on specific jobs, and self-help books. It really demonstrates the lack of prison-provided resources, along with their motivation to better themselves despite that.

Koki: Honestly, before reading the letters, I would have very ignorantly assumed that very few incarcerated people were passionate readers. I could not have been more wrong. At PBP, we pack tens of thousands of packages each year and still can't meet all of the demand. I certainly would never have guessed the diversity of interests among the incarcerated; unsurprisingly, we move quickly through mass-market thrillers and trade-skill manuals, but just a few weeks ago I had two different letters in one session that specifically requested Black feminist literature! For those of us who have no personal familiarity with the prison industrial complex, it can be very easy to flatten incarcerated people into 2D stick figures solely informed by stereotypes and TV crime procedurals. Reading a handwritten letter from someone, though, and trying to match their interests to the perfect book, very quickly reminds you of the real human being behind every envelope.  

What is your favorite PBP station to volunteer at?

Caro: My favorite PBP station is Invoicer, because you get to write a real human response and serve as the connection to the person you’re mailing to.

Kate: I tend to stick to book picking, mainly because it gives me the most opportunity to make decisions, along with letting me read the letters, which, though occasionally hard to parse, really give me insight into the people I'm helping. On a more frivolous note, I also enjoy trying to maximize the weight of a package, trying to slip small extra books in without going overweight.

Koki: I always try to show up a little bit early to ensure a coveted spot as a picker! I'm a big reader myself, and there's something so lovely and intimate about choosing a book for another person; it's extra special if I can send them a book or author that I know and love. 

What do you think people need to know about volunteering with Prison Book Program?

Kate: It's always nice to do something I genuinely enjoy that also does good; too often volunteering is thought of as a sacrifice, but I tend to have a good time while at the PBP, and spending my time there never feels bad or like a waste.

Caro: The mid-session letter reading is always moving for me. I like to hear how books changed people’s lives. It makes me feel hopeful that by bettering ourselves, we can change the world.

Koki: Every session, there's at least one letter that makes me tear up. I try and take a little longer with those ones. 

Learn More About Community Service at Commonwealth