This is the book that the motion picture was based on... An excellent companion to the film.

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Product Description

In 1963, just weeks before the original publication of this book, the last prisoner was escorted off Devil's Island and Alcatraz ceased to be a prison. Author J.Campbell Bruce chronicles in spellbinding detail the Rock's transition from a Spanish fort to the maximum-security penitentiary that housed such infamous inmates as Robert Stroud, aka the Birdman of Alcatraz, and mobster Al Scarface Capone.The chapters describing the daring escape attempts by Frank Morris and two accomplices from this inescapable prison became the basis for the 1979 Clint Eastwood movie. Discover the intriguing and absorbing saga of Alcatraz, whose name is still synonymous with punitive isolation and deprivation, where America's most violent and notorious prisoners resided in tortuous proximity to one of the world's favorite cities.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #393306 in Books
• Published on: 2005-04-30
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 228 pages

Los Angeles Time
"Dramatic...thrilling...remarkable..."

Chicago Tribune
"Much more than a prison chronicle, much more than a tale of escape...."

From the Publisher
*The true-crime classic first published in 1963 is reissued in this special edition.
*Includes archival photos of the prison and prison life.

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Customer Reviews

Not the greatest
Alcatrz is an interesting place but the book didn't excite me that much. I think this is one of the few cases where the movie is better than the book. I think the history part of the book was a little dry.

Rock History
Escape from Alcatraz would be more appropriately named The History of Alcatraz. On most levels, the book is well put together. The number of misspellings is grotesquely unacceptable, but the content is reasonably thorough.

The book begins at the discovery of the San Francisco island by Spanish settlers and continues through the closure of the prison. The book documents each of the attempts to break out of Alcatraz. Unfortunately, no inmate is confirmed to have escaped alive from The Rock. Many of The Rock's most famous inhabitants are discussed including Al Capone. I particularly enjoyed the stories of how the inmates passed their time. Bootlegging took on a new meaning in Alcatraz when inmates made pruno. Pruno often included such exotic combinations as milk and gasoline.

The book is concluded with the closure of the prison. There is no doubt that Alcatraz was a brutal prison that drove some men insane and others to suicide. While it was not a deterrent to crime, it was an effective punishment for crime. Had the condition of Alcatraz not deteriorated so much since the Civil War, it may still be punishing criminals for there crimes.

The history of the Rock
Escape from Alcatraz depicts the full history of this infamous prison stronghold. It reflects how life was on the Rock and details the circumstances when and how 23 convicts attempted or succeeded in escaping from the island prison - the latter few never to be ever seen or heard of again. If you are interested in Alcatraz you need go no further than reading this book - it is really that good !