Home Can Be Anywhere: All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook


Perry T. Cook in Leslie Connor’s All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook grew up in a unique setting: the Blue River Co-ed Correctional Facility. His mother Jessica, convicted of vehicular homicide, gave birth to and raised the smart, curious, loyal Perry there.

Connor’s novel kicks off with scenes from inside the prison. It quickly changes to show Perry’s life outside the prison when a concerned district attorney, Thomas VanLeer, insists that prison is not the right place for 11-year old Perry to reside. VanLeer moves the boy into his home, giving him a new family in the form of VanLeer’s wife and step daughter Zoey, a friend of Perry’s from school.

Throughout the book, Connor does the work of showing the people inside the prison, and the VanLeer family, as complex characters. VanLeer is the villain here, but Connor makes the effort to show why he does what he does. Jessica is a sympathetic character, but is shown with her warts and all.

At its heart, the novel shows that a family can be anything that feels safe and loving, no matter where it communes. Perry’s transition to life outside the prison is difficult, because it separates him from the men and women inside who’ve raised him. Thankfully they raised him well enough that he adapts to his new family, and finds room inside himself to love both. A unique story, All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook would be a good read for anyone looking to expand their understanding of family.

Thank you to Meghan Meghan McLeod for recommending All Rise for the Honorable Perry T. Cook.

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