Out of 19th century Australia rides a hero of his people and a man for all nations: Ned Kelly, the son of poor Irish immigrants, viewed by the authorities as a thief (especially of horses) and, as a cold-blooded killer. To the people, though, he was a patriot hounded unfairly by rich English landlords and their stooges.

In the end, Kelly and his so-called gang (his younger brother and two friends) led a massive police manhunt on a wild goose chase that lasted twenty months, in which Ned's talents as a bushman were augmented by bank robberies and the support of nearly everyone not in a uniform. His one demand — for which he would have surrendered himself was his jailed mother's freedom.

Executed by hanging more than a century ago, speaking as if from the grave, Kelly still resonates as the most potent legend in the land down under. (From Knopf Random Vintage Canada)