Dead Run: The Untold Story of Dennis Stockton and America's Only Mass Escape from Death Row

This is probably the best true-life prison story I have ever read (and I've read a lot). The writing is excellent, very down-to-earth and easy to follow. And the storyline itself is so compelling. It really gives the reader a "you are there" sense. Recommend highly!

What struck me most about Dead Run is how well it is reported. This is not a tract; it is an elaborate journalistic mosaic of the grim realities behind the loud cries for death row vengeance. Jackson and Burke provide the story that allows readers to draw their own conclusions. There are no saints and justice is elusive at best. It is an account that has left a deep impression in this reader's consciousness.

As a reporter at the daily paper that coverd the Stockton case from arrest to execution (and now as a lawyer with the firm that helped defend him during his original trial), i can say the writers did an excellent job of piecing together the puzzel that was Dennis Stockton. I disagree with some of the conclusions, but never the less find their reporting thorough, but not cumbersome.What was especially insighful was Dennis' image and opinion of his death row neighbors. I know lawyers and reporters familiar with some of them and his observations are interesting in comparison.From the first day I reported on this story (which was already some seven years inot thecase) I thought this case had book material written all over it. I am glad that the book was done and done with such thoroughness and a reasoned point of view.

The authors of "Dead Run" bring serious reporting and wonderful style to a terrific story. The result is a book that ranks with "In Cold Blood" and "Executioner's Song" in the annals of great true crime. I deserves a good run both in the book stores and on the silver screen.

DEAD RUN is the best work of crime journalism I've read since THE EXECUTIONER'S SONG. It transcends the increasingly shabby true-crime genre. It is a superb study of life on Death Row. It is the latest proof that the land of the free continues to execute the innocent. It is a jailbreak story that rivals PAPILLON. It is crime history at its most elevated, and yet there's not a stodgy line. Social context is never forgotten, but the narrative line chugs ahead like a runaway locomotive. I will re-read this book many times and recommend it to all who enjoy a great yarn and responsible journalism.