Al Capone Does My Shirts Exploration Quotes

How we cite our quotes: (Chapter.Paragraph)

Quote #1

"The most exciting thing that happened to me this vacation was my mom didn't feel like cooking because our pans were still packed, so my dad brought home a plate of roast chicken, potatoes and cooked carrots…" I pause a minute. This wasn't what I wrote in my outline. I'm going free-form now. "…from the cell house kitchen. It was cooked by a kidnapper, a two-time murderer and a postal robber too!" (7.34)

The kids at school are more than willing to believe that life on Alcatraz is a dangerous adventure, and Moose makes his life sound way more exciting than it actually is when he tells his classmates that he eats the convicts' food. This also shows Moose exploring a side of himself he didn't previously know existed—before he moved to Alcatraz, he wasn't one to tell stories.

Quote #2

"You're going to sell the Alcatraz laundry service? Why?" I ask.

"I just told you why. Money." Piper starts walking again.

"Does your dad know about this?"

She snorts. "Not hardly," she says, taking off again.

"Hey." I hurry after her as she ducks into a doorway. "I didn't say—" (7.54-58)

Piper is always itching to start a new adventure, push a new boundary, and explore something unknown. Moose is quite the opposite, and isn't tempted by dangerous new prospects. But because of the company he keeps, he can't help but get swept into her schemes from time to time.

Quote #3

Annie catches the ball and holds it. She walks up close enough to whisper. "You got to get along with Piper. Otherwise she'll make trouble for you and your dad." (9.63)

Here's an element of intrigue. Moose is warned about Piper, the warden's daughter—Annie tells him that if he gets on her bad side, bad things could happen to him. So in this new world that he finds himself in, she's the bad guy he should avoid.