Picking up where Al Capone Does My Shirts (Putnam, 2004) left off, the story of Moose Flanagan’s life on Alcatraz Island in 1935 continues to center on changing relationships, family connections, and the intriguing idea of interacting with a notorious criminal. Thanks to a special favor by Capone himself, Moose’s sister Natalie is now attending a school in San Francisco where her condition (unidentified at the time of the novel’s setting, but likely diagnosed as autism today) is understood and accepted. When an unsettling note arrives in the laundry that says, “Your turn,” Moose must struggle with the ethical issue of owing a favor to a criminal and draw complex conclusions about loyalty and honor. Meanwhile, other cons who have been given the privilege of working outside the prison in the warden’s home and around the island seem trustworthy initially, but their true motivations are made clear in a nail-biting climactic scene. As in the first book, Moose struggles to navigate his way among the community of island kids, as relationships evolve and grow through interactions that are realistic and often humorous. (Ages 10–13)

Moose and the cons are about to get a lot closer in this much-anticipated sequel to NEWBERY HONOR Al Capone Does My Shirts

It's 1935. Moose Flanagan lives on Alcatraz with his family, the other families of the guards, and a few hundred no-name hit men, con men, mad dog murderers and a handful of bank robbers too. And one of those cons has just done him a big favor.

You see, Moose has never met Al Capone, but a few weeks ago Moose wrote a letter to him asking him to use his influence to get his sister, Natalie, into a school she desperately needs in San Francisco. After Natalie got accepted, a note appeared in Moose?s freshly laundered shirt that said: Done.

As this book begins, Moose discovers a new note. This one says: Your turn. Is it really from Capone? What does it mean? Moose can't risk anything that might get his dad fired. But how can he ignore Al Capone?