Marching Powder cover

Marching Powder

by Rusty Young

"Inspired by the description of San Pedro prison in La Paz, Bolivia, in the Lonely Planet Guidebook - and in particular by the 'English-speaking' tours it advertised -- Rusty Young decided to visit the notorious jail. The tour was given by inmate Thomas McFadden, a British citizen arrested for drug smuggling. They struck up a friendship, and Young ended up spending for months in San Pedro, listening to McFadden and learning about one of the strangest places on earth. San Pedro is a city within a city: Inmates buy and cell their cells. Advertisements cover the walls. Wealthy drug lords live in opulence and continue to do business. The poor scrape by however they can. As Young discovered through McFadden, San Pedro functions through a truly unique form of capitalism, and features a fascinating cast of captive characters. Part Midnight Express and Part Alice in Wonderland, Marching Powder is a firsthand account of life in one of the world's most shocking destinations." -- book cover

Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?