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King of Heists
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More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
Bringing the notorious Gilded Age to life in a thrilling narrative, J. North Conway tells the story of those who plotted and carried out this infamous robbery, how they did it, and how they were tracked down and captured. The robbery was planned by criminal mastermind George Leonidas Leslie - a society architect and ladies' man whose double life as the nation's most prolific bank robber led him to be dubbed the King of the Bank Robbers. "The New York Times" proclaimed the 1878 heist the most sensational in the history of bank robberies in this country. An absorbing tale of greed, sex, crime, betrayal, and murder, "King of Heists" blends all the richness of history with the thrills of the best fiction.
About the Author
J. North Conway is the author of six nonfiction books, including American Literacy: Fifty Books That Define Our Culture and Ourselves. He lives in Assonet, Massachusetts.
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17 reviews
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
I was the victim of the Heist
7 Mar 2010
Format:Hardcover
When I bought this book, who could tell that I and my fellow readers were being robbed of our $25 purchase price! Not only was KOH repetitive and terribly edited, but also, poorly researched. There was nothing new written about George Leslie. What was recounted could better and more interestingly be read in a good crime encyclopedia such as that of Carl Sifakis.
The author's main contemporary source was the New York Times which was certainly not anywhere near as good a reference as the Police Gazette, the leading crime reporting newspaper of the time.
There isn't a footnote in the book and much of the "facts" about Leslie are conjectural,at best. In direct comparison to this minimum opus, I suggest Mike Dash's First Family which is interesting, well written, and thoroughly researched. As compared to Luc Sante's Low Life, this work pales.
After slogging through KOH, I know how Leslie's victims felt.
The author's main contemporary source was the New York Times which was certainly not anywhere near as good a reference as the Police Gazette, the leading crime reporting newspaper of the time.
There isn't a footnote in the book and much of the "facts" about Leslie are conjectural,at best. In direct comparison to this minimum opus, I suggest Mike Dash's First Family which is interesting, well written, and thoroughly researched. As compared to Luc Sante's Low Life, this work pales.
After slogging through KOH, I know how Leslie's victims felt.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
A good story, poorly told!!!!
9 Feb 2010
Format:Hardcover
This was one of those little known aspects of the Gilded Age frequently overshadowed by the true larger than life personalities of the day. The facts of George Leslie and his knack for non-violent bank robberies were fascinating, but because Conway wrote it more as a fictional narrative (or TRIED to) the more unique elements of the story got lost in the shuffle. For instance, Leslie's invention, the Little Joker; I really wanted to see a diagram or a copy of a blueprint of how it actually worked once placed inside a safe dial to help reveal the combination. I also wanted to see a photo or drawing of Leslie, I'm sure that one must have existed somewhere, college graduate photo--something!!! I went on google and got a drawing of him, why wasn't one put in this book???? I actually "googled" a few things that Conway refered to in this book to see if images were available anywhere. As usual, that fine website didn't disappoint. The only photos we really saw in "King" were of financiers Fisk and Gould, who have had thier likenesses published in almost every book about that time and of places in New York at that time; again, easily accessable images.
The text was a bit repetative and that was all the more confusing and watered down the story that much more. I hope Mr. Conway is more forthcoming and less of a "broken record" when teaching his collegate english classes. As the old saying goes, "those who can't do teach." I guess, in that respect, some things really never do change, do they????????
The text was a bit repetative and that was all the more confusing and watered down the story that much more. I hope Mr. Conway is more forthcoming and less of a "broken record" when teaching his collegate english classes. As the old saying goes, "those who can't do teach." I guess, in that respect, some things really never do change, do they????????
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
A Repetitive Unedited Mess
3 Feb 2010
Format:Hardcover
Although the book promised to be a work of true crime, the only true crime was the apparently endited form the book was published in. It seemed more like a working draft of a book, not a finished work. Identical thoughts and phrases were used over and over again. It was as if the author had been paid by the word.
Conway filled the book with tidbits of Old New York history, but made shocking errors that a quick trip to Google might have prevented. One small example was his reference to the infamous prison in the "City of Sing Sing". There is no such place. The jail was and is located in Ossining, New York. Conway got neighborhood boundaries incorrect, particularly the location of the Bowery. His tidbits, while interesting in themselves, often had no relationship to the story he was attempting to tell. He also filled the book with political commentary, that had nothing to do with the story.
The book was not at all about the "King of Heists, The Sensational Bank Robbery of 1878..."; it was a gossipy biography of a dandified bank robber, George Leslie.
Not recommended.
Conway filled the book with tidbits of Old New York history, but made shocking errors that a quick trip to Google might have prevented. One small example was his reference to the infamous prison in the "City of Sing Sing". There is no such place. The jail was and is located in Ossining, New York. Conway got neighborhood boundaries incorrect, particularly the location of the Bowery. His tidbits, while interesting in themselves, often had no relationship to the story he was attempting to tell. He also filled the book with political commentary, that had nothing to do with the story.
The book was not at all about the "King of Heists, The Sensational Bank Robbery of 1878..."; it was a gossipy biography of a dandified bank robber, George Leslie.
Not recommended.
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