Inside Alcatraz cover art

Inside Alcatraz

My Time on the Rock

Preview

£0.00 for first 30 days

Try for £0.00
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Inside Alcatraz

By: Jim Quillen
Narrated by: Jeff Harding
Try for £0.00

£7.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

Confirm Purchase
Pay using card ending in
By completing your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and authorise Audible to charge your designated card or any other card on file. Please see our Privacy Notice, Cookies Notice and Interest-based Ads Notice.
Cancel

About this listen

Each day we saw the outside world in all its splendour, and each day that view served as a reminder that we had wasted and ruined our lives. Jim Quillen, AZ586 - a runaway, problem child and petty thief - was jailed several times before his twentieth birthday. In August 1942, after escaping from San Quentin, he was arrested on the run and sentenced to forty-five years in prison, and later transferred to Alcatraz.

This is the true story of life inside America's most notorious prison - from terrifying times in solitary confinement to daily encounters with 'the Birdman', and what really happened during the desperate and deadly 1946 escape attempt.

©1991 Jim Quillen (P)2015 Random House Audiobooks
Social Sciences True Crime Runaway Emotionally Gripping Exciting
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

Listeners also enjoyed...

The Ballad of Danny Wolfe cover art
34 Years in Hell cover art
Escape from Alcatraz cover art
Escaping Alcatraz cover art
Escape from Venezuela’s Deadliest Prison cover art
The Upside of Fear cover art
HMP Manchester Prison Officer cover art
Behind Her Miami Badge cover art
True Crime Stories Boxset: 48 Terrifying True Crime Murder Cases cover art
Cocky cover art
The Boys Who Challenged Hitler cover art
On the Run cover art
When White Fades to Black cover art
No Handcuffs cover art
Inside Parkhurst cover art
The Toughest Prison of All cover art

What listeners say about Inside Alcatraz

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    71
  • 4 Stars
    31
  • 3 Stars
    12
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    69
  • 4 Stars
    25
  • 3 Stars
    13
  • 2 Stars
    3
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    66
  • 4 Stars
    26
  • 3 Stars
    15
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    1

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The Book.

I found the book to be interesting and at times comically with that dry sense of humour which I like. The narrator is also easy to listen to. Would greatly recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Fantastic

What a great listen. And what an amazing inspiration of a Man, to overcome his youth, to his crimes, his life inside, then to do what he became, shows if you have the drive, you can do it!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Outstanding listen

Kept me interested and entertained the whole way through! Helps if you have been to the prison!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Great book, well read and thought out

Fantastic book if you like history and crime like myself. It's made me want to learn more about Alcatraz and other inmates. Definitely worth a read, and had me gripped. Would recommend.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

'WOW' sums this book up perfectly!

Would you consider the audio edition of Inside Alcatraz to be better than the print version?

I often have very limited time to actually pick up a novel and read it front to back. For me the audible version was absolutely perfect.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

I tried to listen to this as often as I could and on a daily commute that usual bores me, I found that with my Audible companion it was enjoyable and if anything, time went too quickly.

Any additional comments?

I am fascinated by the criminal world and especially by Alcatraz. I read anything I possibly can that provides even just a glimpse of what life on that island was really like. Until now however, I've never read anything as informative and enjoyable as this.

Jim Quillen lived a very extraordinary life packed with twists and turns and plenty of upset and he truly expresses that in his writing. Everything was against him, but he never faltered, never ceased, his determination stayed strong until he reached the goal he set out to achieve. He shows that no matter how tough, redemption isn't always impossible. I have to be honest and say that the way Quillen turned his life around really did inspire me.

I would urge anyone with even the slightest interest in Alcatraz, the criminal world, redemption or reform, to read this book. You will not be disappointed!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

4 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Brilliant

Wow... What a great book to listen to. Brilliantly written and well read by one of the greatest readers of books.. Captivating from start to finish. What a great life from awful beginnings which get worse and then on to one of life's nicest and helpful people. Goes to show you can change a leopards spots and a books cover.. Brilliant!! I loved it. It reads like a film plot.. Well written and really well read by Jeff Harding... 10 out 10

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Inspiring story and captivating

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Definitely yes. The story is not only inspiring but also expressed in a very fine language.

What did you like best about this story?

There are many things and only few general points I will mention: how much the childhood has a bearing on the future of all of us; how a good and loving word ("of this priest" in Alcatraz) may change the entire course of life and how love and trust of other people is important in encouraging to dig the best out of us.

What about Jeff Harding’s performance did you like?

At times I was wondering if it was not too flat and rather "unemotional" but this absence of dramatisation is in fact the entire strength of the lecture. I really enjoyed this professional narration.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

Yes. It is captivating from the beginning to the end. Maybe with the exception of the appendix which was interesting but not really a "must".

Any additional comments?

I would recommend this book to anybody.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Hard hitting and interesting

What made the experience of listening to Inside Alcatraz the most enjoyable?

The honesty of the writer, a hard life but there is hope.

What about Jeff Harding’s performance did you like?

Yes, the performance of reader was very good, crisp and clear.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it.

Really enjoyed this book. I could easily listen to it again. Would definitely recommend it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

very interesting

Good listen,but towards the end became a bit weary of the narration and just wanted it to finish.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!