Local author Leo W. Banks will be the featured speaker at the Friends of SaddleBrooke Libraries lecture on Tuesday, Dec. 12, at the DesertView Theater.
Nancy McCluskey-Moore
On Tuesday, Dec. 12, at 4 p.m. in the DesertView Theater, the Friends of SaddleBrooke Libraries (FSL) lecture will feature local author Leo W. Banks. Banks has just published his fourth novel, The Flying Z.
Will Zachary and his dementia-stricken uncle lead an isolated existence running The Flying Z, a struggling ranch on the Arizona-Mexico border. Their life dramatically changes when recent Harvard grad Merry O’Hara, on her way to grad school at Stanford, drives into a ditch on their land … and into the middle of a war between the Zacharys and a vicious drug cartel. Against all odds, Will and Merry try to build a life together at the same time that they’re desperately fighting, out-manned and out-gunned, to protect The Flying Z and their lives.
According to reviewers, “The Flying Z is part western, part crime, part thriller, and all heart and grit! In Will Zachary, Leo Banks has created a modern-day laconic cowboy who’s tougher than a five-day cattle drive, but vulnerable, sentimental, and real. Banks is a master of dialogue, revealing layers of character through just a few spoken words.”
In high school, Banks worked loading delivery trucks with the Sunday edition of The Boston Globe. In those days, the Sunday paper was really heavy, so he switched from lifting to writing. He graduated from Boston College and earned a master’s degree from the University of Arizona where he later taught writing. His articles have appeared in USA Today, Newsday, The Miami Herald, National Review, National Geographic Traveler, Sports Illustrated, The Wall Street Journal, and many others. He has been a correspondent for the Los Angeles Times and, yes, The Boston Globe.
He has written four books of Old West history for Arizona Highways Publishing and co-wrote a book about the Grand Canyon. His book about the saguaro cactus won’t stop selling. He has won 38 statewide, regional, and national journalism awards. Banks also has written four novels: Double Wide, Champagne Cowboys, .45 Caliber Perfume, and his latest, The Flying Z.
This lecture is free for members of Friends of SaddleBrooke Libraries and $5 for nonmembers to attend.