The Prison Island

October 5, 2015
Comics creator Frakes (Tragic Relief; Woman King) recounts her childhood growing up on McNeil Island, home to a now-shuttered prison in Washington's Puget Sound. Frakes shifts between her family's visit to the prison's 2011 closing ceremony, during which they revisited familiar buildings including their old house, and flashbacks to her childhood memories. For Frakes's family, living on the island meant that, for once, they were all in the same place at the same time; the price of that togetherness included 6 a.m. ferry rides to school and having to stay inside when prisoners were working outdoors. Frakes's loose b&w cartooning and straightforward dialogue provide a solid sense of both McNeil's history and the peculiarities of life on a prison island (such as having to lock up pool toys that could potentially be used in an escape). Dramatic moments are at a minimumâaside from an escape attempt that "just about ruined" Frakes's 16th birthday, the overall tone of the book is nostalgic and melancholy, a highly specific example of the idea that one can't go home again. Ages 14âup.

September 15, 2015
Grades 6-10 Island living is a dream for lots of folks, but what if that island was home to a prison? That's what Frakes' childhood was like on McNeil Island, a federal penitentiary accessible only by air or sea, with homes for prison staff and their families. After briefly introducing the island, Frakes intersperses memories of her youth with a visit much later, after the prison was closed for budget reasons. In black-and-white, sparely drawn yet expressive cartoon artwork, Frakes recalls her childhood on the island and delivers fantastic details about growing up next to a prisonthey had to lock up their pool toys, for example, lest a prisoner use them in an escaperight along with typical middle-school frustrations, like being mercilessly teased at a sleepover. Though many things about living on McNeil were difficult, such as the impossibly arduous task of trying to order a pizza, it's clear that Frakes has a soft spot for the place. This gratifying memoir of an unconventional childhood would be a natural fit for fans of Liz Prince's Tomboy (2014).(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)