In this study of Emilio Picariello (aka Emperor Pick) Adriana Davies paints a vivid portrait of what life was like at the turn of the 20th century in the Canadian west for Italian immigrants, with opportunity hampered by bigotry. Despite this, Emilio managed to build quite the empire, with both legal and illegal business. His predilection for running alcohol between BC and Alberta, however, is what led to his demise, as well as the demise of his employee, Filumena Lassandro. Both were executed for the murder, with Filumena the last woman executed in Alberta.

Davies’ thesis questions the guilty verdict with a thorough analysis of the historical record, and her narrative is illustrated with a number of images, including many that have never been published before.