Bandit: A Portrait of Ken Leishman

Tefs, Wayne

ISBN 10: 0888013779 / ISBN 13: 9780888013774

Published by Turnstone Press, Winnipeg, MB, 2011

About this Item

INSCRIPTION FROM WAYNE TEFFS on title page; As New; In the spring of 1966 Ken Leishman stepped onto the tarmac of the Winnipeg Airport and into the pages of Canadian history. By then, the mastermind behind the country's largest gold heist had already gained Dillingeresque notoriety as a gentlemanly bank robber. Toronto headlines had spread the news about the brazen - and polite - 'Flying Bandit.' This time, he almost got away. Almost. In this book Tefs imagines what happened behind the headlines, intertwining the full-on action of Leishman's exploits with the story of a smart but troubled kid growing up in a stifling small prairie town. As a married man and father of seven, Leishman dreams of greatness and a good life for his family. Even as he plots the biggest caper in Canadian history, he is guilt-ridden over his failed promises to go straight. Readers of this fictionalized version of a tremendous true story will be hard pressed to judge the life of a Canadian fold hero who dared to fly far out of bounds.

Seller Inventory # 007634

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Bandit: A Portrait of Ken Leishman
• Publisher: Turnstone Press, Winnipeg, MB
• Publication Date: 2011
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0888013779
• ISBN 13: 9780888013774
• Binding: Soft cover
• Condition: As New
• Signed: Inscribed by Author(s)

About this title

Synopsis

In 1966, Ken Leishman stepped onto the Winnipeg Airport tarmac and into the pages of Canadian history as the mastermind behind the country's largest gold theft. Known as the "flying bandit" or the "gentleman bandit," Leishman had already gained Dillinger-esque notoriety as a bank robber, when he stole the public's imagination with his last great exploit: brazenly - and politely - holding up a bank in Toronto.

Regarded as a Robin Hood-like figure at the height of his exploits, Leishman had humble beginnings in Holland, Manitoba. Master story-teller Wayne Tefs imagines what happened behind the "Flying Bandit" headlines, inter-mingling the full-on action of the gold heist with the story of a smart but troubled kid growing up in a stifling small prairie town. Raised by ultra-strict grandparents, young Ken thrived on Bowery Boys, Gary Cooper and James Cagney movies. As a married man and father of seven, Tefs' Leishman dreams of greatness, and a good life for his family free from poverty and worry. Even as he plots the greatest caper in Canada, he is conflicted by his wife's tears and guilt-ridden with his failed promises to go straight.

Once again, Tefs presents another fictionalized version of a tremendous true story. Readers will be hard-pressed to judge the life of this "gentleman bandit" and Canadian folk-hero who dared to fly far out of bounds.

About the Author

Wayne Tefs was born in Winnipeg and grew up in northwestern Ontario. He has edited a number of anthologies and published eight novels and a work of non-fiction. His novel Moon Lake received the Margaret Laurence Award for 2000 and his novel won the 2007 McNally Robinson Book of the Year Award. He lives in Winnipeg with his wife and son.