Humbling life story of a career criminal who found redemption in America's most notorious prison. After a difficult childhood and a gradual descent into serious crime, Jim Quillen was sentenced to 45 years in Federal prison after an escape from San Quentin, and was transferred to Alcatraz because of his persistence in attempting to escape. Here he was an eyewitness to the most devastating escape attempt in the Rock's history, the Battle of Alcatraz in May 1946, which lasted 3 days and left 3 prisoners and 2 guards dead. But in the aftermath of the breakout attempt and with his own failed escape plan leaving him stranded in the feared D-Block solitary confinement "hole", he discovered God through the intercession of a kindly priest and determined to turn his life around, eventually through study and hard work winning accreditation as an X-ray technician, leading to his eventual touching reconciliation with his estranged family, parole, marriage and fatherhood. A mix of Papillon and The Shawshank Redemption, this is a great read, full of desperation, determination and the best and worst of human nature. Ultimately a a really top-notch feel-good story. ( )