Edgar Award Finalist: The story of the infamous escape attempt and bloody siege at Alcatraz. In 1946, six men attempted to break out of Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary, a maximum-security prison on an island off the coast of San Francisco. Their bloody siege lasted two days, and ended with five dead and fifteen wounded—plus two of the perpetrators executed for their role in the endeavor. In Six Against the Rock—the basis for a TV movie—an award-winning crime writer tells the story of this notorious event and the inmates who were involved, supplemented with vivid dramatic recreations that place the reader in the center of the conflict. “The personal clash between Coy and Cretzer over leadership of the desperate little band provides much of the suspense; Alcatraz itself, that logistical marvel of a fortress, provides the rest. And for a backdrop there are two platoons of Marines firing bazookas as well as something of the grim history of that most forbidding prison.” —Kirkus Reviews, starred review

For the first time in one place, Roger M. Sobin has compiled a list of nominees and award winners of virtually every mystery award ever presented. He has also included many of the “best of” lists by more than fifty of the most important contributors to the genre.; Mr. Sobin spent more than two decades gathering the data and lists in this volume, much of that time he used to recheck the accuracy of the material he had collected. Several of the “best of” lists appear here for the first time in book form. Several others have been unavailable for a number of years.; Of special note, are Anthony Boucher’s “Best Picks for the Year.” Boucher, one of the major mystery reviewers of all time, reviewed for The San Francisco Chronicle, Ellery Queen Mystery Magazine, and The New York Times. From these resources Mr. Sobin created “Boucher’s Best” and “Important Lists to Consider,” lists that provide insight into important writing in the field from 1942 through Boucher’s death in 1968.? This is a great resource for all mystery readers and collectors.; ; Winner of the 2008 Macavity Awards for Best Mystery Nonfiction.

The author shares anecdotes about the world of publishing, discusses the business aspects of the industry, and explains how writers get their works published.

Todd Morris has finally achieved his dream of playing professional football. It took him years to do it, and it's a low-level professional team, but he pulled it off. However, his cousin Clark is not okay with this. Clark has nothing going for himself, and he thinks he's the smartest person in the world. In his own version of an equal pay movement, he begins kidnapping professional athletes and holding them in prisonlike conditions until he gets paid what they get paid. The athletes are given the promise that if they can successfully escape, Clark will set everyone free and pretend like the situation never happened. Knowing his cousin better than anyone else, Todd gets himself taken away, with the thought process that he might be able to escape if he knew what the other athletes had to work with. While in prison, he recruits women's soccer players, Jacquelyn Ramsey and Shauna Weber, to help him. The two ladies are hesitant to start, but eventually, they begin to trust that Todd knows what he's doing.

"Ernest Lageson Sr. was one of the guards shot. His son, Ernest Jr., a teenager at the time, agonized along with other hostage families waiting to hear if loved ones were alive. Now Ernest Lageson Jr. delivers an insider's account of both the notorious riot and life inside the most infamous prison in American history."--BOOK JACKET.

Brings to life the stories of legendary 'public enemies' for whom America's first supermax prison was created. This book contains answers to questions that have swirled about the prison: How did prisoners cope psychologically with the harsh regime? and What provoked the protests and strikes?