It's nearly impossible to imagine what it might be like to walk in Amanda Knox's shoes, but her new book "Free: My Search for Meaning" is certainly a good place to start.

Knox goes into some detail about the crime that unfortunately made her famous—the murder of her roommate Meredith Kercher while they both studied in Italy as college students—but that's not what the book is primarily about. Knox spends most of the time reckoning with the realities of prison, unwanted (and unwarranted) fame, and the continuing attempt to reclaim her truth and her life. It's brutally honest, moving, hard to relate to, but ultimately enlightening and inspiring. I'm totally baffled by people convinced of Amanda's guilt; Rudy Guede 100% murdered Meredith, and there's evidence to prove it! So why are there people who don't even KNOW his name, but DO know of and blame Amanda Knox?! If that question interest you—or you're one of those people!—you should pick this one up and be prepared to do some introspection.

The most inspiring part of this book to me, surprisingly, centered around her experience in prison. In this early section of the book, Amanda ruminates on the idea of freedom, and what it can mean to live a meaningful life regardless of your physical circumstances. She emphasizes that freedom can sometimes be more of an idea than a condition, and acceptance and purpose can exist even in the most traditionally un-free-seeming situations. And in fact, she confesses that she at times felt more of a prisoner once she was released because of all the media attention on her. She comes to the conclusion that she can't really win in the court of public opinion, and there comes a point where she shouldn't really try. All she can do is continue speaking the truth, and speaking out against the injustice that she faced to try to bring attention and hope to those in the same situation.

Amanda also spends a lot of time detailing the evolving relationship between her and her one-time prosecutor, and her drive to understand him and reconcile their adversarial positions. She accepts that though she may not ever get him to admit he was wrong or declare her innocence, she can meet him where he is and lead with empathy for his position. Empathy seems to be a main driver of mosts of her actions and interactions, and this informs her worldview and what she tries to communicate to us throughout this book.

So even though Amanda Knox's life has been extraordinary, her book "Free" tells a supremely human story full of heartbreak and healing. I really felt that I got to know her through this book, and I highly recommended giving it a read if you're at all interested in themes of wrongful conviction, trial by media, human connection, overcoming trauma and redemption. And a lot of other things too. 4.5/5 stars and a lot to unpack.

[Thanks for NetGalley and Grand Central Publishing for an advance reader copy of this book!]