Moose Flanagan

Moose Flanagan is the main character and narrator of this novel. He is the son of Cam and Helen Flanagan, and he is the younger brother of Nat. Moose feels he is in a position of great responsibility because he thinks he needs to look after his father, who has just taken a job as associate warden at Alcatraz. Also, he must help watch out for his older sister and teach her to act normally. Finally, he must prove that a fire that damaged his apartment was not his sister’s fault.

Because their mother and father were out celebrating the night that their apartment caught fire, Moose and Nat were alone. Moose was able to get himself and Nat out safely, but he is afraid that he will be held responsible for the fire because he went to sleep instead of staying awake to keep his...