In 1913, Robert Gosden publicly called for the assassination of Canadian premier, Richard McBride. By 1919, he was urging Prime Minister Robert Borden to “disappear” key labour radicals to quelch rising discontent. What happened? `Rebel Life’ plumbs the enigma that was Gosden—migrant laborer turned radical activist turned RCMP informer—and throws startling new light on the formative years of the Canadian West. In tackling such a shadowy figure, `Rebel Life’ also serves as a fascinating case study in historiography and provides a valuable introduction to the historian’s craft. Extensively revised throughout, this second edition incorporates new information about Gosden’s career that has come to light since the first edition was published in 1999.