This great champion of Canadian literature was in his late thirties when he arrived from Britain - and in his mid-forties when he finally settled for good in his beloved Vancouver. Until now, readers could only infer Woodcock's motivation for reinventing himself through immigration, to the extent of virtually giving himself a new personality befitting his new environment. Now, partly through privileged access to Woodcock's private papers and partly through interviews with his associates and colleagues on both sides of the Atlantic, a fuller, more detailed picture emerges. The Gentle Anarchist balances Woodcock's interior existence with his professional self and explores the benevolent demons that pushed him to heroic feats of composition and kindness.