Written by Nico Medina & Illustrated by David Groff
SUMMARY:
Published in 2016 by Scholastic, Inc., this 108-page historical account explains the origin of Alcatraz Island dating back to its first known settlers. Author Nico Medina explores Alcatraz’s evolution into a prison facility and its notoriety up through its status as a present-day tourist attraction. Alcatraz’s occasional presence in films is also briefly mentioned. This book is extensively illustrated with David Groff’s pencil sketches.
REVIEW:
The author, Nico Medina, impressively provides more depth than one might expect, in terms of its notorious prisoners (i.e. Al Capone) and little-known facts (i.e. how families of guards once lived on the island). Inevitably, Medina covers the various escape attempts with sufficient details without being too graphic re: violent content. Yet, what really completes this book as an educational package is that artist David Groff’s sketch illustrations are superb. Where is Alcatraz? makes an excellent teaching tool, primarily for fourth and fifth graders.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
There’s a helpful flip-side insert: one side has four color photos and the other side is a color map of Alcatraz Island, as it is situated in San Francisco Bay. There are timelines of Alcatraz & San Francisco, as well as world history between 8000 B.C. and 1973. A short bibliography offers eight books for further reading, though none of them are recommended as kid-friendly.
ROSCOE’S ODD MOON RATING: 8½ Stars
