He came to Canada in 1919 with his parents, and was raised in Toronto, Ontario where he attended Danforth Technical High School.
[1] During the Great Depression, he rode the rails in both Canada and the United States, and then joined the International Brigades in the Spanish Civil War.
Later in his career, he concentrated on mystery novels, including Death in Don Mills (1975) and Murder Has Your Number (1978).
His background (poor, urban, Protestant) is rare for a Canadian writer of his time.
The Yellow Sweater (1952) Hugh Garner's Best Stories (1963; winner of the 1963 Governor General's Award) Men and Women (1966) Violation of the Virgins (1971) One Mile of Ice The Moose and the Sparrow (1966) The Father (1958) Author, Author!