June Reading Guide | Page 14

non-fiction

Detention

Ralph Jackman

Australian Author Paperback

$ 29.99 $ 34.99

Our Non-Fiction Book of the Month for June is a powerful memoir that shines a light on the importance of educators and the rights of all kids to have an education. When Ralph Jackman left a long and successful career as a sports reporter to become an educator, he could never have imagined his first foray into teaching would be at Melbourne’ s Parkville Youth Justice Precinct. Over the course of 300 or so pages, Jackman offers the reader a behind-the-scenes glimpse into the life of an educator and shares the highs and lows of his careers. His students and indeed, all students across Australia, are at the heart of this story as Jackman fights to secure the rights of some of Australia’ s most vulnerable youth. Urgent change is needed in the education system, so that nobody falls between the cracks. Continue reading to see a special Q & A with the author.

Congratulations on being the Non-Fiction Book of the Month! Can you tell us a bit about your book?

Detention tells the story of my eye-opening, rollercoaster ride as a new teacher in the maximum-security Parkville Youth Justice Precinct. As a former sports journalist raised in the privileged bubble of Sydney’ s Upper North Shore, it was a scarily steep learning curve. But with the help of incredible colleagues, I overcame the early challenges and became fully invested in my inspiring students. The book also tracks my growing frustration – and subsequent battle – with a system that’ s failing some of our most marginalised and vulnerable young people.

You left sports journalism to step into teaching. How did you end up at Parkville Youth Justice Precinct as your first teaching job?

By accident. I expected a job teaching history at a mainstream school. But, in the months after graduating, Parkville College was the only school which gave me an interview. They offered me the position later that day. I could be wrong, but I had a strong feeling that I was the only applicant.

Were there parts of the story that were particularly difficult to put down on the page?

The most difficult part of the story was capturing the qualities and essence of the remarkable people I taught and worked with. I constantly asked myself the question: Am I doing this person justice?

The book is both a personal story and a critique of the system. What do you see as its most urgent failings?

Poor leadership tops the list. Youth Justice policy, with its increasing emphasis on punishment, is driven by political ends rather than what’ s best for young people and communities. Another pressing failure is the lack of effective oversight of youth detention facilities. As a result, detainees are denied access to education and subjected to harmful practices such as isolation and solitary confinement.

Were there particular students or moments that changed the way you think about teaching or justice?

There were so many. One student’ s expletive-filled review of the school history curriculum changed my approach to teaching the subject. Another took his fight for a prison library all the way to the Victorian Education Minister, which taught me that students are sometimes best served by a facilitator rather than an instructor. And through the incredible example of youth justice workers, I learned that a good education behind bars is about so much more than a good school.

What do you hope readers will take away from Detention?

I hope the book convinces readers that young people in detention are as capable as any of their contemporaries on the‘ outers’, and that we’ ll all benefit if they’ re given the basic things all young people need to reach their potential – access to education and access to good people.

8 Monthly Reading Guide – June 2026