On the Rock: Twenty-Five Years in Alcatraz: The Prison Story of Alvin Karpis as Told to Robert Livesey

by Alvin Karpis and Robert Livesey

Book Overview

Book annotation not available for this title.Title: On the Rock 2008Author: Livesey, RobertPublisher: Little Brick SchoolhousePublication Date: 2008/11/01Number of Pages: 318Binding Type:... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0919788173
• ISBN13: 9780919788176
• Release Date: January 2008
• Publisher: Little Brick Schoolhouse
• Length: 318 Pages
• Weight: 0.54 lbs.

Customer Reviews

The best Alcatraz book

Karpis was the inmate who spent most time on the rock: almost 26 years out of the prison's 29 years. He tells his story candidly and doesn't try to gloss things over or sound macho. The best book I've read on Alcatraz, and I've read close to 20.

Super Star at the Super-Prison

Alvin Karpis is the only man to survive earning the sobriquet "public enemy #1". After a whirlwind time as one of the most infamous outlaws in the lawless days of the1930s, Karpis was captured alive and sent to Alcatraz. His twenty-five years in America's first super-prison is the subject of this memoir. Built as the government's answer to the 1930's wave of kidnappings and bank-robberies, Alcatraz was to be an escape-proof prison housing only the elite of the criminal world. It was certainly proof that 'crime doesn't pay' especially for the American taxpayers. Karpis' memoires of his life on the rock showcase his amazing memory and are full of his experieces with the infamous residents of the super-prision. He either has a photograpich memory or his ghost-writer did a great deal of research. While this is an interesting and informative book, rest assured that Karpis spends a great deal of time making sure that he always presents himself in the most favorable light even if the truth has to suffer.

insightful and entertaining

alvin karpis the man who documents his life in alcatraz,describes how he survived being held captive on the rock for 25 years.all the fights he had to fight just to survive.how so many prisoners attempted to escape but failed.they either got shot or drowned.one of the surprises was that karpis knew al capone.and how capone went crazy when he got infectefd and died of syphillis.its a tough book about struggle on the rock and its a good one.wish you luck finding it.

An exciting historical account of life in Alcatraz.

It's a meticulous and gripping story told by Alvin Karpis, Public Enemy #1, who spent 25 years in Alcatraz. He describes a true picture of what life was really like inside the country's most notorious prison. His diary format chronicles everything from prison food to homosexual relationships. What adds authenticity to Karpis' account are his candid revelations that delve into his own sexual encounters, involvement in escape plans and even hinting of murdering an inmate. A GREAT BOOK!

very entertaining; story of a determined man

autobiography of former public enemy no.1. the only criminal so designated by the f.b.i. to survive capture. story of a determined man serving 25 years in alcatraz prison. worth reading