McCampLeggBell discussion

The subject of Ned Kelly can be quiet controversial. Some see him as nothing more than a criminal and a murderer, others see him as an Australian "Robin Hood", a champion of the oppressed.

What qualities of Ned's character and his actions might lead you to arrive at each point of view? Does he really do anything heroic?
Is he justified in his criminal actions?

Besides what the title suggests, this is a work of fiction.

What aspects of the novel makes it seem more realistic and what aspects make it seem more mythical?

oooh! questions already? impressive Sachie ...

yep all we have to do is find the book. hehehe

i just ordered it on Booktopia
http://www.booktopia.com.au/search.ep...

did they give you a shipping time because I thought it was three weeks.....I WANT IT NOW!! lol

i don't remember that ... and now i can't see 'cos it's "processing" ... :o(

Hey guys, another interesting book to read. Thanks Sach (that's not sarcasm). I go to the local bookshop tomorrow else will need to order it myself.

I might try the library first...if I can find it. hehe

I couldn't get it at our bookshops so I ordered it on Sunday. As soon as it gets here, I will start.

Hey ladies. Is everyone on this book yet? How is it so far? I am still waiting for my book to arrive - hope it will be here soon and lucky that I am a fast reader.

Yep...I got it at the library. I'm almost finished it, thought I'd slow down to wait for you guys. (lol) I like it alot.

i'm still waiting for mine to arrive ... it's on it's way ... and i'm still slogging my way through Freddie ... bah

thanks for choosing this book Sachie ... Peter Carey has been someone who's books I've wanted to read for some time ... and this was an interesting choice

the structure of the chapters (with the references to letters and documents at the beginning) gave it a level of credibility ... i believed i was reading Ned Kelly's actual words ...

to that point - i also felt the account was pretty one sided and that made it feel all the more believable ... i mean, of course he's going to paint a picture that justifies his behaviour and actions ...

i didn't think of Ned has a hero - he was just a kid trying to do the best with what he had ... he made several poor choices but had the charm and character to justify it all to himself convincingly - which made him appealing and convincing generally ... but he sometimes got lucky and it's in that luck that i feel his legend has grown ...

i also bought into his persecution ... and found myself barracking for the underdogs and disliking the authorities ... but i think that's just my natural instinct ...

all in all - an enjoyable read