Cooper Not Out

A delightfully uplifting Australian novel about the joy of discovering your greatest potential.

In the Australian summer of 1984, in the small country town of Penguin Hill, Sergeant Roy Cooper is making a name for himself. He’s been batting for his local cricket club for decades — and he’s a statistical miracle. He’s overweight, he makes very few runs, he’s not pretty to watch, but he’s never been dismissed.

When local schoolgirl Cassie Midwinter discovers this feat, she decides to take the matter further. The remarkable story finds its way into the hands of Donna Garrett, a female sports columnist who’s forced to write under a male pseudonym to be taken seriously.

That summer, the West Indies are thrashing Australia, and the Australian people’s love of cricket has never been lower. But Donna’s columns on Roy Cooper capture the imagination of a nation, and soon there’s pressure to select him for the national team. This would see him playing at the Melbourne Cricket Ground, carrying the spirit of every small country town in Australia along with him. Could such a miracle actually happen?

This is sport, after all, and who doesn’t love a good story?

Cooper Not Out is a funny, heart-warming novel set within real events. It is a moving and highly original tale about friendship and belief, and the joy of discovering your greatest potential.

About the Author

Justin is a Melbourne based journalist, broadcaster and writer. He’s currently the presenter of a national radio program across the Macquarie Network (2GB, 3AW, 4BC, 6PR), a columnist with the Melbourne Herald Sun, and a weekly guest on Seven’s Sunrise program and Sky News Australia. He has covered Australia’s war history through his writing and broadcasting - including Afghanistan in 2013 when he was embedded with Australian troops, for which he received an award from Commercial Radio Australia, and a live national broadcast of the 100-year Gallipoli ceremony.