image of person or book cover 4263778456126871970.jpg
Cover image courtesy of publisher.
y separately published work icon Useful single work   novel  
Issue Details: First known date: 2015... 2015 Useful
The material on this page is available to AustLit subscribers. If you are a subscriber or are from a subscribing organisation, please log in to gain full access. To explore options for subscribing to this unique teaching, research, and publishing resource for Australian culture and storytelling, please contact us or find out more.

AbstractHistoryArchive Description

'Sullivan Moss is useless.

'Once a charming underachiever, he's now such a loser that he can't even commit suicide properly. Waking up in hospital after falling the wrong way on a rooftop, he comes to a decision. He shouldn't waste perfectly good organs just because they're attached to his head. After a life of regrets, Sully wants to do one useful thing: he wants to donate a kidney to a stranger.

'As he scrambles over the hurdles to become a donor, Sully almost accidentally forges a new life for himself. Sober and employed, he makes new friends, not least radio producer Natalie and her son Louis, and begins to patch things up with old ones, like his ex-best mate Tim. Suddenly, everyone wants a piece of him.

'But altruism is not as easy as it seems. Just when he thinks he's got himself together, Sully discovers that he's most at risk of falling apart.' (Publication summary)

Publication Details of Only Known VersionEarliest 2 Known Versions of

    • Scoresby, Ferntree Gully area, Melbourne - East, Melbourne, Victoria,: Penguin , 2015 .
      image of person or book cover 4263778456126871970.jpg
      Cover image courtesy of publisher.
      Extent: 320p.
      Note/s:
      • Published 28 January 2015
      ISBN: 9780670077823
    • Melbourne, Victoria,: Penguin , 2016 .
      image of person or book cover 7913727305879708750.jpg
      Cover image courtesy of publisher.
      Extent: 320p.
      Note/s:
      • Published: 01/02/2016
      ISBN: 9780143573739

Other Formats

  • Also large print.

Works about this Work

Review : Useful 2015 single work review
— Appears in: Good Reading , February 2015;

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Naama Amram Reviews 'Useful' by Debra Oswald Naama Amram , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 370 2015;

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Author Excited to Be Returning to Mollymook Katrina Condie , 2015 single work
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 18 April 2015; (p. 19)
Review : Useful L. S. , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 7 February 2015;

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Well Read Katharine England , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 14 February 2015; (p. 24)

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Tale of Second Chances Laced with Humour Thuy On , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Weekend Australian , 7-8 February 2015; (p. 18)

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
An Uncommon Breed Steps Forth Fine Oswald Debut Both Sad and Funny Dianne Dempsey , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 21-22 February 2015; (p. 34) The Age , 21 February 2015; (p. 38) The Canberra Times , 21 February 2015; (p. 23)

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Well Read Katharine England , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Advertiser , 14 February 2015; (p. 24)

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Review : Useful L. S. , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: The Saturday Paper , 7 February 2015;

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Naama Amram Reviews 'Useful' by Debra Oswald Naama Amram , 2015 single work review
— Appears in: Australian Book Review , April no. 370 2015;

— Review of Useful Debra Oswald , 2015 single work novel
Debra Oswald Linda Morris , 2015 single work interview
— Appears in: The Sydney Morning Herald , 24-25 January 2015; (p. 24-25) The Canberra Times , 24 January 2015; (p. 15) The Age , 24 January 2015; (p. 24)
Author Excited to Be Returning to Mollymook Katrina Condie , 2015 single work
— Appears in: The Canberra Times , 18 April 2015; (p. 19)
Last amended 22 Apr 2016 14:40:46
X