Someone Is Hiding on Alcatraz Island

Teenager Danny Sullivan has ticked off a gang of bullies, and while running away from them he jumps on a tour boat taking off for Alcatraz Island.

The cat-and-mouse game starts out well enough, but halfway through it gets bogged down as a waiting game in the prison's main cell block, and I just stopped caring.

I plucked this dusty little paperback off the shelves of our home library because it is short and made me think of the family trip we took to San Francisco years ago that included a visit to Alcatraz Island. It seems to me that there are a lot more parts of the island that could have been used to amp up the hide-and-seek aspect.

Someone is Hiding on Alcatraz Island is a very dated story about Danny who has offended the local gang and has run into them on Fisherman's Wharf in San Francisco. In order to avoid being beaten or worse, Danny takes the ferry over to Alcatraz Island thinking the gang will be gone by the time he comes back from the tour. While on the ferry, he meets Biddy, a young female park ranger going to work on the island. To Danny's surprise, the gang follows him over to the island and he then tries to find a way to hide.

This book is very short but lacks character development. For example, we really don't learn much about the gang members or why they do the things that they do. The details describing Alcatraz and the tour are well researched and show more historically accurate. The story does build the suspense, but it leaves a lot of details unresolved. In 1984 when this book was written, it was probably very interesting, but it doesn't hold up to modern standards for young adult novels. show less

This is good adventure story for young teens 12-15. Right from the begining we are immediately running with Danny to escape the Outlaws, a gang seeking vengence. The Outlaws want Danny because he helped an old lady escape an attacker, who just happened to be a brother of one of the outlaws. The story gets exciting when both Danny and the Outlaws are trapped on Alcatraz island for the night. Danny and a female ranger Biddy are captured by the gang and put into one of the old cell blocks. I felt like I was at Alcatraz Island because of the vivid descriptions throughout the book: the morgue, water tower, cell block. Danny has to overcome his fear and escape from the cell to get help. I enjoyed this fast paced action thriller. The only part show more that was under developed were the references to Danny deceased father who apparently died in a prison. show less

A quick read, this thriller keeps you on your toes. Intended for a middle school audience, the language is simple and straightforward. A boy named Danny gets himself in trouble with a gang from his school called the Outlaws. They stalk him on to Alcatraz Island where through a series of events he gets free and takes down all four gang members rescuing a beautiful park ranger in the process. Struggling readers would enjoy this book. Although sparse in figurative language the book's strength lies in theprecarious situations which create a feeling of immediate danger. I would describe this as a high interest book for teens and preteens.

When he offends the toughest gang in his San Francisco school, Danny tries to elude them by going to Alcatraz only to find himself and a Park Service employee trapped by the gang in an old prison cell block. This suspensefull adventure keeps even reluctant readers interested.

Middle school students will really get into this story. The violence is mild, but it is still important to keep it in mind.