This term we have been reading a novel called Tomorrow When The War Began written by John Marsden. Here is my novel response.
This text is about a group of high school teen friends who decided to go camping in the outskirts of Wirrawee. Their names were Corrie and Kevin who were a couple, Ellie, Homer, Lee, Fi and Robyn. They took Ellie’s parent's Land Rover and filled it with rations, sleeping supplies and of course, themselves. They drove through Taylor's Stitch and headed straight for a hidden place known as “Hell”. Hell was sort of like a small camping ground but tucked away in the depths of the forest. Once they’d arrived they set up their camp and went about their day. Around their third day they spotted fighter jets soaring across the night sky, they thought it was for the commemoration day because of how low they were flying. A few days passed and the group had had enough of Hell and their camping. They packed their things and drove back home. When they got home it was empty, the dogs weren’t barking, their houses were still, no movement, no life, nothing. The streets were full of rubble from the smashed buildings, the cars were on fire and in pieces, the town was not in great shape. They realised a war had started while they were away which is why there were fighter jets from other countries flying across Wirrawee. They got together and came up with a plan to survive and make sure they work as a team.
Something this text made me think about was if whenever you’re in great danger or fear there will always be somebody right by your side reassuring you and making sure your team is sticking together and working well. There will be somebody who you can always rely on to be there for you in rough times, it goes both ways.
My favourite character was Ellie because she was resourceful when it came to her, Corrie and Kevin’s lives at stake, she used her prior knowledge and made a petrol bomb to keep the three soldiers away from attacking and killing her and her friends. She made a petrol bomb with Mrs. Alexander’s ride-on lawn mower, Kevin’s singlet and one of Mrs. Alexander’s lighter they found in the shed since she’s a heavy chain smoker. Ellie soaked the singlet in the petrol tank of the ride-on and lit in on fire. In a few seconds the lawnmower blew into great big orange flames. She had killed one of the male soldiers and left the other two with serious injuries. She felt extra guilty afterwards knowing that one of them was a female who looked just as frightened as she was. She couldn’t stop thinking about the female soldier for the rest of the day.
This story made me reflect on my attitude towards my friends. What if my friend group and I were in a traumatic situation like this. I wonder who would become a leader, who would be resourceful, who would be the toughest, who would be the selfish one out of the lot. I reckon we would find a way to make it out alive despite the major adrenaline rushes around the entire situation.
I would recommend this novel to the ages of 13,14 & 15 because the teens in the book are around the same age group and the readers can relate to the group and how they’re feeling. It also shows them how you have to expect the unexpected in times like these because who knows when a war or something just as bad could randomly occur with no notice. It also shows them how to work as a team even with the self centred moments that you still need to cooperate as a team, you need to work as a team not as individuals.
