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Ned Kelly

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Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
Ned Kelly by Peter FitzSimons delves into the life of Australia's infamous bushranger. The book explores Kelly's transformation from a rural youth facing hardship to becoming a symbol of resistance against colonial authorities. With a focus on personal anecdotes and historical context, it paints a vivid picture of 19th-century Australia while examining the complex legacy Kelly left behind.
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you're intrigued by legendary outlaws and Australian history. It provides a detailed and engaging portrait of one of Australia's most infamous bushrangers, exploring his life, motivations, and the historical context of his actions. The narrative combines thorough historical research with storytelling flair, ideal for anyone fascinated by gritty tales of rebellion and survival.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

History comes to life with Peter FitzSimons.

The National Bestseller

Love him or loathe him, Ned Kelly has been at the heart of Australian culture and identity since he and his gang were tracked down in bushland by the Victorian police and came out fighting, dressed in bulletproof iron armour made from farmers' ploughs.

Historians still disagree over virtually every aspect of the eldest Kelly boy's brushes with the law. Did he or did he not shoot Constable Fitzpatrick at their family home? Was he a lawless thug or a noble Robin Hood, a remorseless killer or a crusader against oppression and discrimination? Was he even a political revolutionary, an Australian republican channelling the spirit of Eureka?

Peter FitzSimons, bestselling chronicler of many of the great defining moments and people of this nation's history, is the perfect person to tell this most iconic of all Australian stories. From Kelly's early days in Beveridge, Victoria, in the mid-1800s, to the Felons' Apprehension Act, which made it possible for anyone to shoot the Kelly gang, to Ned's appearance in his now-famous armour, prompting the shocked and bewildered police to exclaim 'He is the devil!' and 'He is the bunyip!', FitzSimons brings the history of Ned Kelly and his gang exuberantly to life, weighing in on all of the myths, legends and controversies generated by this compelling and divisive Irish-Australian rebel.


Praise for Peter FitzSimons

'Peter FitzSimons is an Australian phenomenon.' The Canberra Times

'FitzSimons knows how to make words race like eager sled dogs on their homeward run.' Newcastle Herald

'Meticulously researched, well-written and incredibly presented.' Weekend Notes

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9780857988140

Publisher: Random House Australia

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 01 December 2015

Country: Australia

Imprint: William Heinemann Australia

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 50.0mm

Width: 131.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 594g

Pages: 800

About the Author

Peter FitzSimons is a journalist with the Sydney Morning Herald and Sun-Herald, and a busy events and motivational speaker. He is the author of over twenty-seven books, including Tobruk, Kokoda, Batavia, Eureka, Ned Kelly, Gallipoli and biographies of Douglas Mawson, Nancy Wakee Kim Beazleye Nick Farr-Jonese Les Darcy, Steve Waugh and John Eales, and is one of Australia's biggest selling non-fiction authors of the last fifteen years. Peter was named a Member of the Order of Australia for service to literature as a biographer, sports journalist and commentator, and to the community through contributions to conservation, disability care, social welfare and sporting organisations. He lives with his wife, Lisa Wilkinson, and their three children in Sydney. His forthcoming book is Fromelles and Pozieres- In the Trenches of Hell.

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