The shocking true story of Mary Thompson, a Eugene, Oregon, anti-gang activist who secretly ran her own murderous mob of teenagers—including her own son. Aaron Iturra was just eighteen years old when he was found dead in the bedroom of the Eugene, Oregon, home he shared with his mother and sister. Investigating the crime, Detective Jim Michaud found evidence pointing to an unlikely suspect: Mary Louise Thompson, also known as Gang Mom. Once a biker chick and police informer, she had become a locally famous anti-gang activist. Michaud soon learned Thompson was a modern-day Fagin who was running her own gang of juveniles—including her own son, Beau—which preyed on the unsuspecting city, dealing dope and burglarizing homes. When Thompson had found out Iturra planned to testify against Beau in a felony case, she put out a hit on him.

Many people believe that gangs are made up of violent thugs who are in and out of jail, and who are hyper-masculine and heterosexual. Vanessa Panfil introduces us to a different world. Meet gay gang members - sometimes referred to in popular culture as "homo thugs" - whose gay identity complicates criminology's portrayal and representation of gangs, gang members, and gang life. In vivid detail, Panfil provides an in-depth understanding of how gay gang members construct and negotiate both masculine and gay identities through crime and gang membership. She draws from interviews with over 50 gay gang- and crime-involved young men in Columbus, Ohio, the majority of whom are men of color in their late teens and early twenties, as well as on-the-ground ethnographic fieldwork with men who are in gay, hybrid, and straight gangs. Panfil provides an eye-opening portrait of how even members of straight gangs are connected to a same-sex oriented underground world. Most of these young men still present a traditionally masculine persona and voice deeply-held affection for their fellow gang members. They also fight with their enemies, many of whom are in rival gay gangs. Most come from impoverished, 'rough' neighborhoods, and seek to defy negative stereotypes of gay and Black men as deadbeats, though sometimes through illegal activity. Some are still closeted to their fellow gang members and families, yet others fight to defend members of the gay community, even those who they deem to be "fags, " despite distaste for these flamboyant members of the community.

A zoo volunteer shares her diary of 12 years working in the World of Primates at the Houston Zoo. She helped raise three orangutan babies and a baby siamang gibbon, and was loved, hugged, and peed on by all four. When she wasn't helping with the babies, she helped clean orangutan cages and continues to do so. In this book she shares her experience learning about the orangutans; watching their interactions with each other, the keepers, other volunteers, and vet staff. Orangutan means "person of the forest" and that's how she thinks about her orange ape buddies. They are her friends. This diary lets you share her experiences as a zoo volunteer; the best non-paying job in the world according to her.

This study is based on three years of field work with 99 active gang members and 24 family members. The book describes the attractiveness of gangs, the process of joining, their chaotic and loose organisation, and their members' predominant activities - mostly hanging out, drinking, and using drugs. The authors also discuss gang members' rather slapdash involvement in major property crime and their disorganised participation in drug traffic, as well as the often fatal consequences of their violent life-style. Although the book focuses on the individual, organisational, and institutional aspects of gang membership, it also explores gang members' involvement with other school and neighborhood structures. Extensive interviews with family members provide groundbreaking insights into the gang members' lives. As much as possible, however, the story is told in the gang members' own words.

After budget cuts force the Southside Saints football team to disband, Jamal and his friends have to settle for playing pickup on the hardscrabble field behind their high school. Then the president of a sporting-goods company offers to donate $20,000 worth of equipment to the team. There's only one catch: he wants to be the coach. Thrilled to have a real team together, the players turn a blind eye to Coach Fort's racism, bullying and discrimination. Until he takes it too far. Now it’s up to Jamal and his teammates to take back their team and show what they’re made of.

Bertie's all-girl gang becomes involved in a harmless but heartfelt war with an all-boy gang, until Bertie's grandmother steps in with a perfect solution.