Ballad of the Whiskey Robber by Julian Rubinstein

) overwrites at times, he has a rootin'-tootin' style that's a perfect fit for this Jesse James–like tale, which has the chance to be a sleeper that transcends nonfiction categories.

While Rubinstein (whose work has been collected in Best American Crime Writing

Along the way, he introduces readers to memorable characters in addition to the appealing, alcoholic protagonist: the women Ambrus attracts and a Budapest detective driven out of office by the crime spree. Rubinstein has a knack for telling a good story, and he captures well both Ambrus's appeal and the atmosphere of the first few years of capitalism in Hungary. He was recaptured and is now sitting in prison in Hungary. Much has happened in the 10 years since Attila made his jailbreak. He managed to stay at large for several years while continuing in his role as a back-up goalie on the ice. Rubinstein’s genre-bending nonfiction historo-crime novel, Ballad of the Whiskey Robber was published in 2004, and won Border’s 2004 Original Voices Nonfiction Book of the Year. Taking advantage of poor police work, he took in millions in Hungarian currency and became a headline-grabber. Much has happened in the 10 years since Attila made his jailbreak. Ballad of the Whiskey Robber is a story about capitalism, national identity and the tumultuous post-communist era in Eastern Europe. Then again, Attila, a former pelt smuggler who. Normally in summer, the inmates dressed in shorts. As journalist Rubinstein shows, Ambrus was quite good at it. Rubinstein’s genre-bending nonfiction historo-crime novel, Ballad of the Whiskey Robber was published in 2004, and won Border’s 2004 Original Voices Nonfiction Book of the Year. This was a jail for the accused awaiting sentencing or trial. After talking his way onto a Hungarian hockey team, he turned to robbery to make some cash in the Wild West atmosphere of the early 1990s in Eastern Europe. Attila Ambrus sneaked over the border from Romania into Hungary in the waning days of Communist rule. This story of a bank robber who captured a nation's sympathy in post-Communist Hungary is a rollicking tale told with glee and flair.

Ballad of the Whiskey Robber by Julian Rubinstein