Al Capone Does My Homework

Deception is a motif throughout the novel that aligns with the theme of Moral Decision-Making in a Young Person’s Life by deepening the depiction of Alcatraz’s moral ambiguities. In Alcatraz, things often are not what they seem: An innocent-looking laundry bag can be a repository for counterfeit money, and a scribbled remark by Al Capone on a child’s essay may contain a coded life-and-death warning. To elude the sharp eyes of guards, convicts, and parents, deception flourishes on the Rock, on both sides of the prison bars. The charming Donny Caconi turns out to be the smoothest of the nonincarcerated deceivers, plying a smile and a kind word to mask his many rackets, including arson, counterfeiting, card-cheating, and small-time grifts, such as cheating children in fixed bets.

The island’s children, however, are no strangers to deception, as Piper Williams demonstrates when she tries to pass off her pricey sweater, bought with counterfeit money, as a gift from a “secret admirer.” To calm his sister, Natalie, Moose tries to focus her mind by pretending to get things wrong, like dates and math problems, playing the “Stupid Moose game,” a benign form of deceit (79). Darby’s daughter, Janet, practices a more ambiguous deception, either pretending that her imaginary pixie friends are real, or pretending not to believe in them to avoid worrying her parents; no one quite knows which.