Jack Batten graduated from the University of Toronto Law School, class of 1957, but chose to make his living as a freelance writer. As well as countless articles for such magazines as Maclean’s, Rolling Stone and Toronto Life, he has written more than forty books. Seven are crime novels, and the rest cover a range of nonfiction. These include several biographies. His book The Man Who Ran Faster Than Everyone, about the long distance runner Tom Longboat won the $10,000 Norma Fleck Award. Many of the other biographies portray lawyers and judges in professional action in and out of courtrooms in every region of Canada. Jack Batten lives in Toronto with his wife, the writer and garden designer Marjorie Harris.