Tomorrow, When the War Began (The Tomorrow Series #1) [Audiobook, Unabridged] [Audio Cassette]

John Marsden (Author), Suzi Dougherty (Narrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 30, 2004

When Ellie and six of her friends return home from a camping trip deep in the bush, they find things hideously wrong -- their families gone, houses empty and abandoned, pets and stock dead. Gradually they begin to comprehend that their country has been invaded and everyone in the town has been taken prisoner. As the horrible reality of the situation becomes evident they have to make a life-and-death decision: to run back into the bush and hide, to give themselves up to be with their families, or to stay and try to fight. This reveting, tautly-drawn novel seems at times to be only a step away from today's headlines.

--This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Australian friends return from a camping trip in the outback to discover that enemy forces have invaded the country and imprisoned everyone in town. A gripping tale, told with Marsden's customary incisiveness. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9-12–John Marsden's Australian setting for a seven book series becomes a vivid backdrop for the first title available in audio format (Houghton, 1995). Read by Suzi Dougherty with teen-friendly voicing, the story moves from tense and gripping to philosophical by turns. Ellie, the narrator and resident of the rural ranching district surrounding Wirrawee, tells the story. She and her seven friends return from a camping trip to find their families captive, their homes destroyed or deserted, and their country invaded. Warned in a faxed message to "go bush," they set up a base camp in Hell, a nearly inaccessible valley they have penetrated. Slightly reminiscent of Z for Zachariah by Robert C. O'Brien (Macmillan, 1987), which is mentioned in the story, Ellie is presented here as an inventive and admirable heroine. Conducting covert raids for information, supplies, and rescue missions, the friends ultimately progress to an actual guerilla attack on a key bridge along the enemy supply line. All the while, the friends muse on larger questions—the good and evil in people, their own loyalties, and potential romance as they draw together in the face of their experiences. The discussion of sexual feelings, while not at all graphic, makes this more suitable for high school age listeners. Dougherty's narration is light-hearted, pensive, or fast-paced depending on the mood. Her Australian accent offers a convincing touch that adds to the flavor of the story. Everything does not come out happily ever after in this compelling and thought-provoking novel, and listeners will be eager to read or listen to the other titles in the saga.–Jane P. Fenn, Corning-Painted Post West High School, NY
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 12 and up
  
• Audio Cassette
• Publisher: Bolinda Pub Inc; Library edition (January 30, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1876584920
• ISBN-13: 978-1876584924
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (186 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,779,288 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

56 of 56 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Parents - take my word for it - this is legendary stuff., December 28, 1999

By 

hugh riminton - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tomorrow, When the War Began (The Tomorrow Series #1) (Mass Market Paperback)

I bought this for my daughter to encourage her interest in reading. We wound up fighting each other for turns at it. Within a week, with a few past-midnight "power reads" I hoed through every book in the series. The first three are superb, each better than the last. There are some niggles - the stories rely a touch too much on luck and coincidence, and there is some repetition of ideas. But the strengths are real ones. The plotting is superb - few writers in any genre can get you turning pages like Marsden can. The characters are psychologically and emotionally convincing. The heroism is fairly shared between the boys and the girls in the group. (The female narrator is a refreshing touch). Negative emotions, fear, fatigue, impatience, are not shied away from. The central device is an unexpected invasion of Australia by a foreign force which separates a group of teenagers from adult supervision, leaving them to rely on their own resources. It allows Marsden to explore real issues for teenagers about responsibility, courage, sexual attitudes - even spirituality. All are delivered without judgement or the author's baggage. The action is so exciting - real pulse-racing stuff - but from a parent's perspective it also carries an important theme: life may be difficult, threatening, even terrifying, but it is always worth living, and courage - in whatever its form - is a quality everyone can find and one that is always worth seeking out. I recommend this series to anyone, although the mild sexual references may make it more appropriate for post-pubescent readers.

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Read it!, June 8, 2005

By 

Michael "ProgRocker" (Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tomorrow, When the War Began (Tomorrow Series) (Hardcover)

Any teen, any adult, any grandma must read this book!!!

The whole series is absolutely amazing, I swear, I lost my life for 2 months reading these books. You probably don't need any filling in on details of what actually happens in the book, but I'll give you a brief introduction... A group of teenagers take a little holiday and come back to see their country has been invaded. Ever since I finished, (a good 2 months ago) all I have been thinking about it the books, I want to go to hell, I want to experience what they experienced myself... It's amazing what this book does to you.

Marsden has made no mistake in this book, he gave amazing descriptions, that when I saw pictures of what he had wrote about it was just what I had envisioned. When I finished I felt as though I knew the characters personally (I don't know if this was just because of the length). Dude, what more can I say, these books are amazing, they mess with your mind, you don't know how many Tomorrow Series dreams I've had since finishing, lol.

But yeah, if you walk past one of the books in your libary, or at a book store, GET IT!

I can't say I was too hapy with the sequel, 'The Ellie Chronicles', bit of a waste of time, IMO, I think if the ******* (you know what I mean, if you have read the book) happened again, just for one book it would be good.

I'm done... Now it's your turn, get it!!!

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars So good I couldn't put it down!, November 9, 1999

By 

Rebecca Herman (USA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Tomorrow, When the War Began (Tomorrow Series) (Hardcover)

I wasn't sure I'd like this book, but it turned out to be awesome! It was chilling because these characters, who seemed so real, were just ordinary teens who had comfortable lives until a terrible war separated them from their families and forced them to be heroes. I can't wait to read the rest of the series!