Myomancy ADHD, Dyslexia and Autism

Al Capone Does My Shirts

Gennifer Choldenko

$1.85 via Amazon

Murderers, mob bosses, and convicts . . . these guys are not your average neighbors. Unless you live on Alcatraz. It’s 1935 and twelve-year-old Moose Flanagan and his family have just moved to the infamous island that’s home to criminals like notorious escapee Roy Gardner, Machine Gun Kelly, and of course, Al Capone. Now Moose has to try to fit in at his new school, avoid getting caught up in one of the warden’s daughter’s countless plots, and keep an eye on his sister Natalie, who’s not like other kids. All Moose wants to do is protect Natalie, live up to his parents’ expectations, and stay out of trouble. But on Alcatraz, trouble is never very far away.

A Newbery Honor Book
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
An ALA Notable Book
People magazine Best Kids’ Book
A School Library JournalBest Book of the Year
A Kirkus Editor’s Choice
A San Francisco Chronicle Best Book of the Year
A Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
Parents’ Choice Silver Honor Award
A New York Public Library 100 Titles for Reading and Sharing
A Junior Library Guild selection
A Children’s BOMC selection

People who have brought this book wrote:

* Not only does Moose have the convicts of his new home looming over his head, but he carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. With his dad working every shift he can get as an electrician and guard on the island of Alcatraz, and with his mother taking the ferry across the bay to give piano lessons every day of the week, Moose is left in charge of caring for his older autistic sister. In order to get their daughter the best treatment possible, by enrolling her in a school which provides care for those up to age 12, his parents pretend she is 10, when she is really turning 16. Then, there's Piper, the warden's conniving daughter, always scheming for a way to meet the infamous Al Capone, and recruiting the kids of the island to help. When his world starts crumbling around him, who should come to save Moose's day... but Scarface himself.
* While the normal issues a middle schooler faces (like finicky friendships, boy/girl relationships, peer pressure, and parent misunderstandings) are certainly substantial teaching material in this book, add on the issue of what it is like to have someone in the family with special needs. This book provides a wonderful avenue for pursuing the concepts of empathy, multiple perspectives and points-of-view.

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