Al Capone Does My Shirts -- Gennifer Choldenko

Today I moved to a twelve-acre rock covered with cement, topped with bird turd and surrounded by water. Alcatraz sits smack in the middle of the bay--so close to the city of San Francisco, I can hear them call the score on a baseball game on Marina Green. Okay, not that close. But still.

I'm not the only kid who lives here. There's my sister, Natalie, except she doesn't count. And there are twenty-three other kids who live on the island because their dads work as guards or cooks or doctors or electricians for the prison like my dad does. Plus there are a ton of murderers, rapists, hit men, con men, stickup men, embezzlers, connivers, burglars, kidnappers, and maybe even an innocent man or two, though I doubt it.

I'll read anything about Alcatraz or Al Capone. That isn't to say that I've read much about either. But after this book, I'm hooked. The author included a bibliography, so I'm going to see what I can dig up.

Basically, if you liked the first two books by Christopher Paul Curtis, I think you'll like this one--the subject matter and characters are totally different, but it's really well-written humorous historical fiction that incorporates actual events (like when Al Capone's mother comes to visit him and her corset sets off the metal detectors) with great characters. So it's similar in that way.

GC did a great job with Moose's sister Natalie--she's autistic, but autism hadn't been identified in 1935. So the family is on the verge of institutionalizing her (after trying everything from prayer circles to voodoo) which was a very common practice at that time.

The only thing that didn't do it for me was Moose attraction for the warden's daughter. She's hot, sure. But she still totally sucks. Okay, yeah, she helps him out once. But she still has her own agenda. Oh, and the warden is kind of a stinker, too. They might grow on me if I re-read the book. Maybe. But I doubt it.

Comments

[jess]

I read this one a month or two ago - I really liked the setting and the details and stuff, but like you I didn't really connect to the characters. But a great example of historical fiction, in the sense that the history is fascinating and not just a lesson, and a kid wouldn't feel like the history is being shoveled in.

[bri]

it's funny

[buljackbo]

it sucks

[bronson poopoo]

it look exciting and i want to poop on it on monday

pppppppppppppppoooooooooooooooooooppppppppppp pppppppppppppoooooooooooooooooopppppppppppppp

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&&*************************())))))))))@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@@############$$$$$$$$$$%%%%%%%%%^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^%%%%%%%%%%

[Darik Stithem]

I liked it, it was a good book

[jupi]

i really wanted poop on that book cause it really does suck so bad that book is a peace of shit

[sdhfdsdfcsdcd]

i did not read it