It was my turn to pick the book for book club for the month of July and I chose Useful by Debra Oswald
Debra Oswald is a writer for stage, television and fiction. She is the co-creator and head writer for two of my favourite TV shows - Secret Life Of Us and Offspring. She is the author of 3 'Aussie bite' books, 6 novels for teenagers, and this her first adult novel.
This is the story of Sullivan Moss - depressed, overweight and wanting to leave this world he unsuccessfully tries to commit suicide. When he survives his suicide he decides to do something useful for this world and donate a kidney to a stranger in need.
The story starts off slow as the characters in Sully's life become known and then the second half of the story you are drawn in as the momentum builds and there's a lot of action happening to keep the pages turning to the end. I didn't find any of the characters particularly likable (other than the young boy and the dog!) but I feel that it's the writer's intention as it goes with the theme of the book.
In the beginning I didn't like Sully very much, he was self absorbed, lazy and didn't care about his friends or himself. His character as a loser was portrayed perfectly. But as the story unfolded I started to cheer for Sully and wished he could see that he is worthy and has a place in the world.
I admit I did have high expectations of this book being that the author is the creator of one of my favourite TV shows Offspring. I enjoyed the writing style, it was modern, sometimes brash, and funny. It did give me some heart warming moments throughout and I appreciated that the ending was realistic and not a happily ever after fairytale.
I recommend this book to Debra Oswald fans and anyone feeling down about themselves or suffering from depression, you may feel some similarities with this story and it may help you see the light at the end of the tunnel.
The story starts off slow as the characters in Sully's life become known and then the second half of the story you are drawn in as the momentum builds and there's a lot of action happening to keep the pages turning to the end. I didn't find any of the characters particularly likable (other than the young boy and the dog!) but I feel that it's the writer's intention as it goes with the theme of the book.
In the beginning I didn't like Sully very much, he was self absorbed, lazy and didn't care about his friends or himself. His character as a loser was portrayed perfectly. But as the story unfolded I started to cheer for Sully and wished he could see that he is worthy and has a place in the world.
I admit I did have high expectations of this book being that the author is the creator of one of my favourite TV shows Offspring. I enjoyed the writing style, it was modern, sometimes brash, and funny. It did give me some heart warming moments throughout and I appreciated that the ending was realistic and not a happily ever after fairytale.
I recommend this book to Debra Oswald fans and anyone feeling down about themselves or suffering from depression, you may feel some similarities with this story and it may help you see the light at the end of the tunnel.
I give this book 4 stars out of 5
Jarrah Jungle's Star Rating:
Jarrah Jungle's Star Rating:
1 Bad - I'd rather eat brussel sprouts topped with anchovies than read this again
2 Not Good - I'd rather watch paint dry than read this again
3 Ok - I'm sitting on the fence - its not great but not terrible either
4 Good - I'd give up a bottle of the worlds best champagne for this read
5 Great - I'd pass up a date with Johnny Depp for this read
2 Not Good - I'd rather watch paint dry than read this again
3 Ok - I'm sitting on the fence - its not great but not terrible either
4 Good - I'd give up a bottle of the worlds best champagne for this read
5 Great - I'd pass up a date with Johnny Depp for this read
Disclosure: NetGalley partner with bloggers such as me to help promote authors and their books and I was given this ebook published by Penguin Books Australia to review. As always, all opinions are my own.
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[Image via Penguin Books Australia]
Sounds like a nice book. I like the uplifting storyline
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