Clark was an infant when her mother was arrested. Her debut novel asks what it’s like for children who have only ever known a parent in prison

To be gently rocked into a state of complacency around the existence of mass incarceration is an experience fundamental to being an American. All across our sprawling cities and small towns, we’ve managed to live alongside structures that carry the knowledge that we have an unparalleled number of people in prisons and jails, and a singular relationship to using solitary confinement as a means of punishment.