PLEASE JOIN US FOR THE LAUNCH OF THE LATEST IN THE NED KELLY TRILOGY
BY DOUG MORRISSEY. SPEAKING AT THE LAUNCH WILL BY LEO KENNEDY,
GREAT-GRANDSON OF MICHAEL KENNEDY AND AUTHOR DOUG MORRISSEY.
Sergeant Michael Kennedy and Constables Thomas Lonigan and Michael
Scanlan were gunned down by Kelly and his band of outlaws at
Stringybark Creek, near Mansfield, in 1878.
Doug Morrissey’s acclaimed book _Ned Kelly: A Lawless Life_ (2015)
was short listed for the prestigious Prime Minister’s Literary Award
for Australian History in 2016. This his second book in a trilogy of
historical works dealing with Ned’s life and times, shines a much
needed light on the bushranger’s pioneer community. The lives of
selectors, squatters, and stock thieves are examined revealing a
complex community, significantly different from the Kelly myth fiction
of squatter tyranny, police oppression and selector poverty and
despair. Morrissey’s book holds the key to understanding the Kelly
Outbreak, Ned and his Sympathisers and the neglected ‘silent’
majority of respectable, law abiding residents. It reveals the
collaborative fulcrum on which community life turned, based on
cooperation not conflict. Settling the land is discussed as a
successful pioneering endeavor rather than the usual depressing tale
of woe. Cultural beliefs, shared values, community goals and how
people conducted and expressed themselves in their daily lives, are at
the center of this groundbreaking book. Those writing about the
bushranger’s life and times from now on, will need to reference
Morrissey’s evidence based research or their writings will not be
taken seriously.
_This myth busting book, assisted by John Hirst's valuable editing,
reflects Morrissey's deep knowledge of Kelly Country and its people
and provides an important counterweight to the familiar, generally
sympathetic and overly romantic accounts of Kelly's life and exploits.
It is an important revisionary attack on the dominant historiography
with its 'old cliches and metaphors' and highlights the limited
research and repetition of multiple errors that are characteristic of
most Kelly biographies. The book is a most important rebuttal of the
many myths that have grown up around Ned Kelly._
-- Dr Dale Kent, Adjunct Professor, School of Humanities University
of New England.
_Myth makers beware might well be the touchstone of this work, which
is the latest offering by noted Australian historian Dr Doug
Morrissey. A specialist on matters pertaining to the mythology
surrounding Ned Kelly and his cohorts, he has researched and written
widely on this subject. In Ned Kelly: A Lawless Life Doug brings much
needed fair mindedness and historical accuracy to the Ned Kelly
story._
-- Dr Robert Haldane, Police Superintendent retired, Recipient of the
Australian Police Medal.
_In Ned Kelly: A Lawless Life, Doug Morrissey critically analyses the
mythology surrounding the Victorian bushranger and his Kelly Gang.
Kelly became what would be called today a celebrity criminal. Doug
Morrissey’s detailed research challenges the Kelly Myth. The late Dr
John Hirst substantially edited Ned Kelly: A Lawless Life from a much
longer manuscript. A most valuable contribution to Australian
history. _
-- Judging Panel, Prime Minister’s Literary Award for Australian
History 2016.
Il GAMBERO HAS A LUNCH SPECIAL FOR THOSE ATTENDING THE LAUNCH.
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30/08/2018 Last update