{"title":"Debra Oswald","description":"\u003cp\u003eDebra Oswald’s novels offer a rich tapestry of human experience, weaving together themes of family, resilience, and personal growth. With an ability to capture both the intimacy of individual lives and the broader sweep of historical moments, her stories resonate with warmth and emotional depth.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eReaders can expect compelling characters set against evocative backdrops, exploring relationships and self-discovery with sensitivity and insight. Oswald’s works blend elements of \u003cem\u003ehistorical fiction\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003egeneral fiction\u003c\/em\u003e, making for deeply engaging and thought-provoking narratives.\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"one-hundred-years-of-betty-by-debra-oswald-9781761470615","title":"One Hundred Years of Betty","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eMeet Betty: storyteller, feminist, eternally curious and phenomenally old. On the eve of her hundredth birthday party, Betty tells us her story.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBorn into poverty in pre-war London and growing up fast during the Blitz, Betty grabs the chance at a bigger life by migrating to Australia. On board the SS \u003ci\u003eAsturias\u003c\/i\u003e, she meets three people who will influence the course of her life: Pearl, a good-hearted party girl; Athena, a Greek woman on her way to marry a man she has never met; and Leo, a German Jew who lost his family in the war.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn Sydney, Betty is making ends meet as a waitress at the famous Trocadero dance hall when she stumbles into a rushed courtship with Donald, a wealthy businessman, and dedicates herself to being the ideal 1950s suburban housewife. But life has other plans for Betty, and soon she must find a way to do more than survive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSet against a century of world events and social upheavals, Betty takes us to the frontlines of the anti-war protests and the women's liberation movement of the 1970s, to the AIDS crisis during the 1980s, to Mexico and eventually becomes a TV screenwriter. Even in her nineties, Betty is still passionately engaged with the world, still surprising us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the creator of \u003ci\u003eOffspring\u003c\/i\u003e and bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eOne Hundred Years of Betty\u003c\/i\u003e is the saga of a strong, intelligent woman born too early in time to make the most of her talents without having to fight for everything. It's about the defining force of motherhood, the family we make, and how the determination to live to the hilt, with all the joy and sorrow that entails, can lead to a life beyond one's wildest imaginings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'Sweeping us across the decades with intellect and wit, Betty is the heroine women have been waiting for.' Gabbie Stroud, author of \u003ci\u003eTeacher\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Things That Matter Most\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'Oswald writes older women with the panache, wit and steeliness that many of us will recognise in our mothers, grandmothers and aunts who traversed a century that was never quite ready for them.' Melanie Joosten, author of \u003ci\u003eLike Fire-Hearted Suns\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e'Debra Oswald fulfils a novelist's highest purpose in \u003ci\u003eOne Hundred Years of Betty\u003c\/i\u003e. In a marathon exercise of imaginative empathy, she creates a life in full—all its aching sorrows, all its transcendent joys—unfolding amidst the convulsions of our tumultuous century. A rich feast of a novel, a perfect balance of sweet and sour. You won't want it to end.' Geraldine Brooks, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eHorse\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/i\u003e:\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Oswald has a way with words that immediately draws you into the story and keeps you there until the very last line. Highly recommended!' - \u003ci\u003eMamamia\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A compelling page-turner.' - \u003ci\u003eThe Age\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'In crystal-clear prose, Debra Oswald unveils an all-too-believable world of love and loyalty stretched to the limit, with agonising consequences when the best people are forced to do the worst things. The moment you finish this novel you will want to find someone else who has read it and talk all night about the vital questions it raises.' - Malcolm Knox, author of \u003ci\u003eBluebird\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Oswald is such a deft writer...a timely, evocative and at times harrowing exploration of domestic violence.' - \u003ci\u003eThe Courier-Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Mesmerising and heart-breaking. A perfect story for this moment in time.' Sarah Bailey, author of \u003ci\u003eWhere the Dead Go\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46193450090732,"sku":"9781761470615","price":34.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/9781761470615.jpg?v=1739833728"},{"product_id":"useful-by-debra-oswald-9780143573739","title":"Useful","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eSullivan Moss is useless. Once a charming underachiever, he's now so hopeless that he even fails his attempt to end it all. Waking up in hospital after falling the wrong way on a rooftop, he comes to a decision. After a life of regrets, Sully wants to do one useful thing. If he can't make something of himself, maybe someone else can. He's going to donate a kidney to a stranger.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAs 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 and begins to patch things up with old ones. But altruism is not as easy as it seems. Just when he thinks he's got himself together, Sully discovers there are more temptations than ever to fall apart.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the creator of \u003cem\u003eOffspring\u003c\/em\u003e comes a smart, moving and wry portrait of one man's desire to make a difference.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eDebra Oswald is the master of character.\u003c\/em\u003e — Eddie Perfect\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eBrimming with insight, mesmerizing, and above all, true.\u003c\/em\u003e — Geraldine Brooks\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWith characteristic charm, wit and humanity, Debra Oswald has crafted an irresistible story of metamorphosis.\u003c\/em\u003e — Nick Earls\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eAn expert storyteller ... \u003cem\u003eUseful\u003c\/em\u003e is a very funny and entertaining novel that also gets you right in the heart (and in the kidneys).\u003c\/em\u003e — Malcolm Knox\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eWry, moving and clever, this is an interesting and funny rumination on life, friendship and people's capacity for change.\u003c\/em\u003e — Weekend Post\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46556696936684,"sku":"9780143573739","price":24.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/2453583482239.jpg?v=1750164352"},{"product_id":"the-whole-bright-year-by-debra-oswald-9780143788256","title":"The Whole Bright Year","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the creator of \u003cem\u003eOffspring\u003c\/em\u003e and author of \u003cem\u003eUseful\u003c\/em\u003e, a gripping, wry and tender novel about how holding on too tightly can cost us what we love.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn the summer of 1976, it's picking season on an Australian stone-fruit orchard run by Celia, a hard-working woman in her early forties. Years ago, when her husband was killed as a bystander in an armed robbery, Celia left the city and brought her newborn daughter Zoe to this farm for a secure life. Now sixteen, Zoe is a passionate, intelligent girl, chafing against her mother's protectiveness, yearning to find intensity and a bit of danger.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBarging into this world as itinerant fruit-pickers come a desperate brother and sister from Sydney. The hard-bitten Sheena has kidnapped her wild, ebullient eighteen-year-old brother Kieran and dragged him out west, away from trouble in the city. Kieran and Zoe are drawn to each other the instant they meet, sparking excitement, worry, lust, trouble...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eHow do we protect people we love? How do we bear watching them go out into the perilous world with no guarantee of safety or happiness? What bargains do people make with darkness in order to survive?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the creator of \u003cem\u003eOffspring\u003c\/em\u003e and author of \u003cem\u003eUseful\u003c\/em\u003e, \u003cem\u003eThe Whole Bright Year\u003c\/em\u003e is a gripping, wry and tender novel about how holding on too tightly can cost us what we love.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Penguin Random House NZ","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46672469655788,"sku":"9780143788256","price":34.0,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/4598753482239.jpg?v=1752849857"},{"product_id":"the-family-doctor-by-debra-oswald-9781761067099","title":"The Family Doctor","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/em\u003e is a compelling thriller—fast-paced, gripping, and frightening. But it is more than that because it is a story that draws desperately needed attention to domestic abuse in this country, to institutional indifference, to the devaluing of women's lives. \u003cem\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/em\u003e is a cry for change.' - Sofie Laguna, Miles Franklin Award-winning author of \u003cem\u003eThe Eye of the Sheep\u003c\/em\u003e and \u003cem\u003eInfinite Splendours\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Brilliant. So compelling on so many levels.' - Chris Hammer, author of \u003cem\u003eScrublands\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Debra Oswald is always deft at capturing the nuances of female friendship and romantic attraction, but this time she brings them to a pitch of pulse-racing intensity. Delving into the dark world of domestic violence and society's abject failure to protect those most vulnerable, she has produced a gripping thriller, brimming with heart and intellect.' - Geraldine Brooks, author of \u003cem\u003eThe Secret Chord\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePaula is a dedicated suburban GP, who is devastated by the murder of a friend and her children by their estranged husband and father. Stacey and the children had been staying with her after fleeing his control, and Paula is haunted by the thought that she couldn't protect them when they most needed it. How had she missed the warning signs? How had she failed to keep them safe?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eNot long after, a patient with suspicious injuries brings her anxious young son into Paula's surgery. The woman admits that her husband hurts her, but she's terrified to leave for fear of escalating the violence, and defeated by the consistent failures of the law to help her.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCan Paula go against everything she believes to make sure one woman is saved, one child spared? She isn't motivated by revenge. She's desperately trying to prevent a tragedy...\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eA riveting, provocative novel about women's fury, traumatic grief, new love, deep friendship, and the preciousness of life, \u003cem\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/em\u003e asks the questions: Should you cling to faith in a flawed system, or take control the only way you can? Can a good person justify taking a life to save a life?\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Mesmerising and heart-breaking. A perfect story for this moment in time.' - Sarah Bailey, author of \u003cem\u003eWhere the Dead Go\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/em\u003e brings urgent news, taking the reader into suburban battlegrounds kept private by the threat and actuality of violence. In crystal-clear prose, Debra Oswald unveils an all-too-believable world of love and loyalty stretched to the limit, with agonising consequences when the best people are forced to do the worst things. When is it justified to fight fire with fire? The moment you finish this novel you will want to find someone else who has read it and talk all night about the vital questions it raises.' - Malcolm Knox, author of \u003cem\u003eBluebird\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003c\/div\u003e","brand":"Allen \u0026 Unwin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46716518957292,"sku":"9781761067099","price":27.99,"currency_code":"NZD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0705\/7784\/8556\/files\/28057933482814.jpg?v=1754429549"},{"product_id":"one-hundred-years-of-betty-by-debra-oswald-9781761474743","title":"One Hundred Years of Betty","description":"\u003cdiv class=\"book-description\"\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003eMeet Betty: storyteller, feminist, eternally curious and phenomenally old. On the eve of her hundredth birthday party, Betty tells us her story.\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eBorn into poverty in pre-war London, and growing up fast during the Blitz, Betty grabs the chance at a bigger life by migrating to Australia. On board the SS \u003ci\u003eAsturias\u003c\/i\u003e, she meets three people who will influence the course of her life—Pearl, a good-hearted party girl; Athena, a Greek woman on her way to marry a man she has never met; and Leo, a German Jew who lost his family in the war.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn Sydney, Betty is making ends meet as a waitress at the famous Trocadero dance hall when she stumbles into a rushed courtship with Donald, a wealthy businessman, and dedicates herself to being the ideal 1950s suburban housewife. But life has other plans for Betty, and soon she must find a way to do more than survive.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSet against a century of world events and social upheavals, Betty takes us to the frontlines of the anti-war protests and the women's liberation movement of the 1970s, to the AIDS crisis during the 1980s, to Mexico and eventually becomes a TV screenwriter. Even in her nineties, Betty is still passionately engaged with the world, still surprising us.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFrom the creator of \u003ci\u003eOffspring\u003c\/i\u003e and bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/i\u003e, \u003ci\u003eOne Hundred Years of Betty\u003c\/i\u003e is the saga of a strong, intelligent woman born too early in time to make the most of her talents without having to fight for everything. It's about the defining force of motherhood, the family we make, and how the determination to live to the hilt, with all the joy and sorrow that entails, can lead to a life beyond one's wildest imaginings.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Sweeping us across the decades with intellect and wit, Betty is the heroine women have been waiting for.' Gabbie Stroud, author of \u003ci\u003eTeacher\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Angry Wives Club\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Oswald writes older women with the panache, wit and steeliness that many of us will recognise in our mothers, grandmothers and aunts who traversed a century that was never quite ready for them.' Melanie Joosten, author of \u003ci\u003eLike Fire-Hearted Suns\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e'Debra Oswald fulfils a novelist's highest purpose in \u003ci\u003eOne Hundred Years of Betty\u003c\/i\u003e. In a marathon exercise of imaginative empathy, she creates a life in full—all its aching sorrows, all its transcendent joys—unfolding amidst the convulsions of our tumultuous century. A rich feast of a novel, a perfect balance of sweet and sour. You won't want it to end.' Geraldine Brooks, bestselling author of \u003ci\u003eHorse\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003ePraise for \u003ci\u003eThe Family Doctor\u003c\/i\u003e:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Oswald has a way with words that immediately draws you into the story and keeps you there until the very last line. Highly recommended!' - \u003ci\u003eMamamia\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'A compelling page-turner.' - \u003ci\u003eThe Age\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'In crystal-clear prose, Debra Oswald unveils an all-too-believable world of love and loyalty stretched to the limit, with agonising consequences when the best people are forced to do the worst things. The moment you finish this novel you will want to find someone else who has read it and talk all night about the vital questions it raises.' - Malcolm Knox, author of \u003ci\u003eBluebird\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Oswald is such a deft writer...a timely, evocative and at times harrowing exploration of domestic violence.' - \u003ci\u003eThe Courier-Mail\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e'Mesmerising and heart-breaking. A perfect story for this moment in time.' 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