Australia's Most Infamous Criminals: Gripping Chronicles of Bold Heists, Clever Frauds, and Mysterious Murders
This compilation of stories by Graham Seal, a distinguished authority in folklore at Curtin University, presents a captivating tableau of Australia's historical underworld. Furthermore, the alternating shifts between innovation, folly, cruelty, and even altruism create an engaging reading experience.
READ REVIEW
↓
Australia's Most Infamous Criminals: Gripping Chronicles of Bold Heists, Clever Frauds, and Mysterious Murders
graham seal | 2023
Australia's cultural heritage is a treasure trove of captivating stories, filled with dramatic exploits, daring adventures, enchanting landscapes, and remarkable individuals. Among these narratives, none looms larger in the realm of popular folklore than the bushranger—a notorious outlaw both celebrated and condemned in Australian society. These stories also unveil a complex tapestry of social history, demonstrating how storytelling serves as a medium for grappling with the challenges of the past.
Professor Seal has unveiled a remarkable literary achievement in his latest work, Australia’s Most Notorious Criminals: Gripping Chronicles of Bold Heists, Clever Frauds, and Mysterious Murders. Within its pages, Seal delves into 60 of the most celebrated, and occasionally lesser known, tales of criminality, murder and disorder in Australia's history. He investigates how these stories have evolved over time—sometimes sensationalised, romanticised or fictionalised—and what these transformations reveal about Australia's social history and the underlying factors that propelled these stories into enduring symbols of infamy and, at times, defiance.
Seal's work encompasses a diverse spectrum of vividly depicted villains, ranging from those who disembarked from convict ships to continue their unlawful endeavours, to those who lurked in the shadowy alleyways of burgeoning towns and cities over the subsequent centuries.
The writing style is refreshing and accessible, interwoven with primary sources that provide valuable insights into culture, time, and place. Beneath the surface, the book offers a critical examination of the societal conditions of the era and the pressures that fostered a fertile environment for criminal activities. As Marcus Aurelius Antonius once observed, poverty is the mother of crime, and Seal's work highlights the role of exploitation and injustice in shaping these crimes. The deeply personal approach to these stories makes for compelling reading, allowing readers to delve into the lives of these infamous individuals, their victims, and those who sometimes brought them to justice.
Australia's Most Infamous Criminals: Gripping Chronicles of Bold Heists, Clever Frauds, and Mysterious Murders is published by Allen & Unwin.
Reviewer: Dr David Waldron, PHA (Vic & Tas)