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On the Lam: Great (and Not So Great) Escapes from Prison
Fascinating stories of the age-old tug-of-war between prisons desperate to keep inmates inside and the escapees pursuing freedom.
A convict who returned to the prison he had recently escaped from to foment a mass break out; a murderer on the run who veered from folk hero to persona non grata after killing a famous police dog; a fugitive from the United States who was recaptured in Canada after she was featured on America’s Most Wanted — these are just a few of the felons whose prison break adventures continue to enthrall and terrify.
Along with probing the origins, structure, and failings of a collection of historic and contemporary correctional institutions, On the Lam brings into sharp focus the attempts of masterminds, tricksters, villains, and innocents to claw their way to freedom — sometimes successful, sometimes abortive, often deadly.
A convict who returned to the prison he had recently escaped from to foment a mass break out; a murderer on the run who veered from folk hero to persona non grata after killing a famous police dog; a fugitive from the United States who was recaptured in Canada after she was featured on America’s Most Wanted — these are just a few of the felons whose prison break adventures continue to enthrall and terrify.
Along with probing the origins, structure, and failings of a collection of historic and contemporary correctional institutions, On the Lam brings into sharp focus the attempts of masterminds, tricksters, villains, and innocents to claw their way to freedom — sometimes successful, sometimes abortive, often deadly.
- GenresTrue Crime
224 pages, Paperback
Published November 11, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
July 18, 2025
read if you like:
📖 non-fiction
🔪 prison escapes
📍 Canada
summary:
This book tells the stories of many epic prison escapes across Canada through history. Some of the tales are pretty fascinating — an inmate who escaped, returned, and attempted to instigate a mass prison break, a murderer who evolved from folk hero to fugitive after killing a police dog and a US fugitive brought back from Canada after her face was on America’s Most Wanted.
The book also goes into detail about the background, details and weaknesses of various old and modern prisons, and what breakdowns allow these prisoners to escape. The author balances that with the escape stories, along with historic tales and more recent escapes. The balance is fun, as it makes it less of a historical non-fiction and more an overall story of the prison system in Canada. While most of the criminals were….less smart, I do wish there was more of a balance with some better, calculated missions to show some of the ingenuity of these felons.
Overall, I would have loved a few more stories and a bit of a broader lens, but if you like prison escape stories, this book is for you! Thanks to Dundurn Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy, and check this book out when it releases on November 11!
📖 non-fiction
🔪 prison escapes
📍 Canada
summary:
This book tells the stories of many epic prison escapes across Canada through history. Some of the tales are pretty fascinating — an inmate who escaped, returned, and attempted to instigate a mass prison break, a murderer who evolved from folk hero to fugitive after killing a police dog and a US fugitive brought back from Canada after her face was on America’s Most Wanted.
The book also goes into detail about the background, details and weaknesses of various old and modern prisons, and what breakdowns allow these prisoners to escape. The author balances that with the escape stories, along with historic tales and more recent escapes. The balance is fun, as it makes it less of a historical non-fiction and more an overall story of the prison system in Canada. While most of the criminals were….less smart, I do wish there was more of a balance with some better, calculated missions to show some of the ingenuity of these felons.
Overall, I would have loved a few more stories and a bit of a broader lens, but if you like prison escape stories, this book is for you! Thanks to Dundurn Press and NetGalley for the advanced copy, and check this book out when it releases on November 11!
July 30, 2025
Smart, Gripping, and Insightful.
On The Lam is more than just a collection of prison escape stories—it’s a sharp look at the cracks in the justice system. Lorna Poplak mixes true crime with history in a way that’s both entertaining and eye-opening. A must-read for anyone who enjoys real-life thrillers with depth. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily
On The Lam is more than just a collection of prison escape stories—it’s a sharp look at the cracks in the justice system. Lorna Poplak mixes true crime with history in a way that’s both entertaining and eye-opening. A must-read for anyone who enjoys real-life thrillers with depth. Thanks to NetGalley and to the publishers of this book for giving me a free advance copy of the book to preview and I am leaving this review voluntarily
July 31, 2025
Really good book about an interesting topic, it's slightly worrying that some people simply walked away from prison, some of the mistakes by the authorities are mind boggling.
I liked that the author managed to make the stories engaging, without glorifying the criminals involved, a tricky thing to do when some of the escapees seemed to be adverse from harming any members of the public that they came across.
I got a copy of this from NetGalley, and this is my honest review
I liked that the author managed to make the stories engaging, without glorifying the criminals involved, a tricky thing to do when some of the escapees seemed to be adverse from harming any members of the public that they came across.
I got a copy of this from NetGalley, and this is my honest review
September 26, 2025
I received an advance review copy for free, and I am leaving this review voluntarily.
This was super interesting! The formatting made it a bit clunky, and it felt a little repetitive at times, but I learned a lot of cool facts to tell people. This is something I will definitely think back on going forward. Giving it a solid three, but someone that is more invested into the topics of police work or prison systems might rate it higher.
This was super interesting! The formatting made it a bit clunky, and it felt a little repetitive at times, but I learned a lot of cool facts to tell people. This is something I will definitely think back on going forward. Giving it a solid three, but someone that is more invested into the topics of police work or prison systems might rate it higher.
October 15, 2025
I was so excited to read this book, and it didn't disappoint. Love the different kind of stories and the mix of history and true crime. I can't wait to read some of these with my students to get their opinions.
October 24, 2025
On The Lam - Lorna Polak
Can you really laugh at successful prison escapes? Well no, you shouldn’t really, but some of these cases are absurd while others are simply genius (In my opinion)
“Desperation and longing for freedom are great motivators.”
Can you really laugh at successful prison escapes? Well no, you shouldn’t really, but some of these cases are absurd while others are simply genius (In my opinion)
“Desperation and longing for freedom are great motivators.”
October 25, 2025
Will definitely leave readers worried about those in charge of our penal institutions.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews