First published 2005
Moose Flanagan watches his old life disappear as his family packs up for Alcatraz Island. His father has taken a job as a prison guard at the famous federal penitentiary. His parents hope the move will help his sister Natalie attend a special school in San Francisco. Moose must abandon his friends and his successful baseball team for this rocky island in the middle of San Francisco Bay. He tells himself the sacrifice will be worth it if Natalie can finally get the help she needs. Maybe then his family can become what he considers normal. But living on Alcatraz means sharing space with some of America's most dangerous criminals. Moose discovers that fitting into this strange new world requires more courage than he expected. The island holds surprises that will test everything he believes about family, loyalty, and what it means to belong somewhere.
Genres: family, american-fiction, historical-fiction, adolescence
Vibes: atmospheric, emotional, thought-provoking
Tropes: fish-out-of-water, found-family
Setting: Alcatraz Island, San Francisco, San Francisco Bay
Period: 20th-century
Hardcover · Thorndike Press