This work investigates the life and cultural legacy of Ned Kelly, the infamous Australian bushranger, to determine how a criminal became a symbol of national identity. Max Brown, a journalist and historian, utilizes primary source accounts, court records, and oral histories to reconstruct the events surrounding the Kelly Outbreak. The book argues that Kelly's actions were a direct response to systemic corruption and the marginalization of the Irish-Catholic working class in colonial Victoria. By examining the social pressures of the era, Brown provides a framework for understanding the transition of a historical figure into a folk hero.

This text is regarded as a foundational biographical study that helped shift the public perception of Ned Kelly from a simple criminal to a complex figure of resistance. The research provides a dense, historically grounded perspective that remains a standard reference for those studying the intersection of Australian folklore and colonial law enforcement.