In this sweeping, genre-blurring autobiography, Miami native William Van Poyck---car thief, burglar, bank robber, escape artist, jailhouse lawyer and novelist---guides readers through a vividly sketched tour, from privileged barefoot youth to reform schools, prisons and death row, an unforgettable, four-decade odyssey through an unraveling life seemingly beyond reconciliation. Providing a brutally authentic look, projected through the lens of raw experience, into the hardscrabble underbelly of America's criminal justice system, Van Poyck paints a broad portrait of the human condition, by turns grim, humorous, poignant, haunting and inspiring, yet always compelling. This no-holds-barred, eye opening saga of human fallibility cuts close to the bone while resonating with timeless themes of despair, hope and redemption.
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8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
A moving testimony to Florida prison conditions,
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This review is from: A Checkered Past (Paperback)
The author has been incarcerated in Florida for most of his life, starting at age eleven. His book is well worth the read, particularly for those who want a better understanding of such matters in Florida. He recounts his life, both committing crimes and incarcerated, as well as his many escapes. For a person who has been incarcerated most of his life, he is a good writer and gives very worthwhile descriptions of Florida "justice": Way too many law enforcement officers lie about him, causing him to have even less respect for our quite flawed criminal justice system. He also recounts the injustices that others have suffered in Florida's "correctional" institutions. And after he had been arrested for felony murder along with Frank Valdez, the death row inmate who was murdered by the prison guards in the late 1990s, he has a very powerful conversion experience to Christianity.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Checkerd Past,
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This review is from: A Checkered Past (Paperback)
I read both Mr. VanPoyck's books and now ordering the third book.. I have shared these 2 books with members of my church and Checkered Past has helped in the youth dept to help educate the teens in what could happen in your life by one wrong decision and finding the correct path to take. Mr. Van Poyck has helped unbeknowst to him many a person see the right before its wrong. His transformation into the spiritual asset of his life has been a blessing .
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Checkered Yet Interesting Past,
This review is from: A Checkered Past (Paperback)
This book is a phenomenal first hand prespective of a life long criminal and prisoner. Mr. Van Poyck gives a real life look into his middle class beginnings where the death of a parent can have a profound effect on a child. It is also entertaining story of twisted escape plots, jailhouse heirearcy and a TRUE STORY of the fast times of miami in the 80s and the life of a drug dealer. Billy is a sympathetic criminal since although involved in murder, he isnt a cold blooded killer, more like a product of the justice system, where respect and bonds of friendship throw you into the midsts of a modern day cowboy. A sympathetic character and A MUST READ
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Inside This Book
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First Sentence:
Still today I measure all other men by the stature of my father, the finest man I will ever know. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
dolly cart, parole commission Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Youth Hall, Van Poyck, East Unit, Yard Dog, New York, Secret Service, Fred Griffis, Lake Butler, West Palm Beach, Eastern Air Lines, Judge Weaver, Wells Fargo, Coral Gables, Frank Smith, Funky Tim, Goon Squad, Los Angeles, Coconut Grove, Dade County Jail, Frank Valdes, Jack Thorpe, Jesus Christ, Judge Miller, Miami Beach, North Miami New!
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Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Still today I measure all other men by the stature of my father, the finest man I will ever know. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
dolly cart, parole commission Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
Youth Hall, Van Poyck, East Unit, Yard Dog, New York, Secret Service, Fred Griffis, Lake Butler, West Palm Beach, Eastern Air Lines, Judge Weaver, Wells Fargo, Coral Gables, Frank Smith, Funky Tim, Goon Squad, Los Angeles, Coconut Grove, Dade County Jail, Frank Valdes, Jack Thorpe, Jesus Christ, Judge Miller, Miami Beach, North Miami New!
Concordance | Text Stats Browse Sample Pages:
Front Cover | Table of Contents | First Pages | Back Cover | Surprise Me!
Citations (learn more)
This book cites 7
books:
See all 7 books this book cites
2
books
cite this book:
- Wells Fargo by Noel M. Loomis on page 283, page 284, and page 289
- Heart Of Darkness by Joseph Conrad on page 37
- The Longest Day: The Classic Epic of D-Day by Cornelius Ryan on page 5
- Alcohol Abuse (Life Guides Series) by Brian R. Ward on page 175
- A Bridge Too Far: The Classic History of the Greatest Battle of World War II by Cornelius Ryan on page 5
See all 7 books this book cites
- Quietus by William VanPoyck in Front Matter, and Back Matter
- WRITING FOR THEIR LIVES: Death Row USA by Marie Mulvey-Roberts in Back Matter
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