Tomorrow series
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| Author | John Marsden |
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| Country | Australia |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Action, Adventure novel |
| Publisher | Pan Macmillan (Australia) |
| Released | 1993 (Australia) & 1995 (USA) |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
The Tomorrow series is a series of novels written by Australian author John Marsden, detailing a high-intensity invasion and occupation of Australia by a foreign power. The novels are told in first person perspective by the main character, a teenage girl named Ellie Linton, who is part of a small band of teenagers waging a guerilla war on the enemy garrison in their fictional home town of Wirrawee. The name of the series is derived from the title of the first book, Tomorrow, When The War Began, which is one of the most celebrated and widely recognized books of Australian literature.
The series consists of seven books, published from 1994 to 1999 [1] by Pan Macmillan and has been reprinted sixteen times. A follow up series entitled the "Ellie Chronicles" began publication in 2003 [2]. It deals with the aftermath of the war and Ellie's attempts to regain a normal level of functioning in the face of the psychological damage sustained during the war.
The invading nation is never specified in the book; in fact, no nation in the world meets the criteria laid out in the series [3] most likely by explicit intent of the author. Likewise, no parts of the war outside Ellie's immediate perspective are covered; the reader is not informed exactly how much of the country is under enemy control, or how well the war is going for the Australian military. This is understandable, given that the series focuses on the characters more than the actual war, and is an accurate reflection of how Ellie and her friends are isolated and cut off from outside communication.
Tomorrow, When The War Began and its subsequent sequels are one of the most popular and critically-acclaimed series of novels aimed at young readers in Australian literature history [4]. It has been translated into five languages and sold between 2 and 3 million copies in Australia alone [5][6].
Contents |
[edit] The Tomorrow Series - Plot Summaries
[edit] Tomorrow, When The War Began
Ellie goes out camping in the bush for a week with her friends Homer Yannos, Lee (whose surname is never mentioned), Kevin Holmes, Corrie Mackenzie, Robyn Mathers and Fi Maxwell. They find a way into a large, vegetated sinkhole in a remote area of bush the locals have dubbed "Hell", and camp in there for the week. During this time they see large numbers of planes flying through the night without lights, and though it is mentioned in conversation the following morning, they think little of it.
When they return to their home town, they find that everyone is missing and their pets and livestock are dead. Fearing the worst, they investigate Wirrawee's situation in three groups. They confirm that Australia (or at least, their part of Australia) has been invaded and local citizens are being held captive by a hostile foreign force. Ellie's group are discovered and in order to escape, create an improvised explosive using the ride-on lawnmower in a backyard as a bomb. However, returning to the nearby meeting point, they discover Robyn and Lee missing. Homer and Ellie search for them and are soon met by Robyn, and the discovery that Lee has been shot in the leg. They eventually get Lee out of Wirrawee, in a dangerous truck chase.
They decide to raid the nearby farmhouses for food and other supplies, and retreat to Hell to establish a base camp for themselves there. On the way they discover their friend, Chris Lang, hiding in his home, and he goes with them. The group decides to wage a guerilla war against the invaders and Ellie, Fi, Lee and Homer steal a petrol tanker, successfully blowing up the bridge that provided the easiest way into Wirrawee (the detour was very slow and complicated). In the meantime Corrie is shot in the back while finding food with Kevin, and Kevin sacrifices his freedom to drive to an occupied hospital with her to get medical assistance.
[edit] The Dead of the Night
The book begins with Ellie describing the damage to the group's morale caused by the loss of Kevin and Corrie. They venture out of Hell and into the town in the hope of finding Kevin and Corrie, and though Ellie is able to secretly visit Corrie while she lies in a coma they see no sign of Kevin. The group, minus Kevin and Corrie, continue their outrageous attacks on the occupying soldiers; they ambush a convoy of supplies and kill several soldiers.
Returning to Hell, they explore the surrounding bush further and discover another group of partisans led by Major Harvey, an ex-soldier of the Australian Army Reserve. Although better equipped and more numerous, "Harvey's Heroes" prove to be a very incompetent group, and after falling into a carefully laid trap, they are massacred in an ambush. Ellie and her friends escape back to Hell, but find that the one member of their group they left behind to take care of things, Chris, has disappeared.
Scouting out nearby farms, they discover that Australian citizens are being used as slaves by the occupying army, which is also moving its own citizens in to live in Australia. They retreat into Wirrawee and discover that the enemy are now using the houses in the wealthiest area of Wirrawee, Turner Street, as a command post for enemy troops. In the process, they are shocked to find that Major Harvey is in fact a traitor.
Using natural gas, they cause an explosion which destroys Turner Street, partly in the hope that it may kill Major Harvey. Returning to Hell via Ellie's home property, they discover the weeks-old, rotting body of Chris - he had stealthed into town to retrieve alcohol and cigarettes, and while drunk driving back to Hell he flipped the car near a dam and was killed. The group takes his body back to Hell and buries it.
[edit] The Third Day, The Frost
Like in the opening of the previous book, the group's morale has once again deteriorated, with some members suffering from eating disorders and insomnia, among others. They discover their friend Kevin working as a slave on a nearby farm, and rescue him by faking his death. He rejoins the group, and tells them that while in captivity, he learned about explosives from other POWs.
With Kevin's knowledge they are able to organize an attack on Cobbler's Bay, a major deep-water harbor in the area, being used by the enemy. They successfully destroy at least one ship and a large part of the wharf, but while attempting to escape they were captured by the enemy and placed in a high security prison being used by the enemy to house "troublesome" Australian citizens. Here they discover that New Zealand has declared outright war on the invaders, but the United States refuses to get involved (although under the ANZUS pact, they are obligated to), fearing another Vietnam situation.
Working at the prison is Major Harvey, the traitor from the last book. He repeatedly tries to convince Ellie that the war is good for Australia, to no avail. Ellie and Homer are eventually sentenced to death while the rest of the group are given sentences varying from 20 to 30 years in jail for their crimes.
Fortunately, the prison is targeted for a bombing raid by the Royal New Zealand Air Force, and, amongst the ensuing chaos, Ellie and her friends manage to escape. Major Harvey tries to stop them, but Robyn kills him and herself with a grenade in a kamikaze attack. The rest of the group are picked up by a Kiwi pilot and taken to New Zealand.
[edit] Darkness Be My Friend
The group tries to live a normal life in New Zealand with other refugees, but are haunted by the war (which is still ongoing). Five months after arriving in the country they are approached by Colonel Finley of the New Zealand Defence Force, who is seeking out Australian guerillas to act as guides for Kiwi SAS units which are being dropped into occupied Australian territory to act as guerrillas. The group agrees reluctantly, and returns to Wirrawee accompanied by a platoon of crack special forces troops.
The SAS troops go missing while on a mission to destroy Wirrawee Airfield (which was being used as a major military airbase), and while searching for them, Ellie's group is spotted and forced to flee. They take shelter in their old high school, and while scouting out the town they discover that Corrie died even after Kevin took her to the hospital, and Lee's parents were killed during the initial stages of the invasion.
The group uses a two-pronged attack against the local airfield (which had been the target of the SAS unit), one plan trying to destroy the airfield outright, and another to sabotage the planes by putting sugar in their fuel. However, a combination of ill-planning, over-confidence, and bad luck cause both their plans to fail, and are forced to flee back to Hell.
The group then makes radio contact with Colonel Finley in New Zealand, who tells them that they have no chance of extraction and will have to return to their old life in occupied territory (camping in Hell).
[edit] Burning For Revenge
While on a scouting mission, the group hide in enemy trucks to avoid being spotted. After a dark and uncomfortable journey they discover to their shock that they have been transported right into the airfield. They decide to attack the airfield (instead of trying to escape), which would in most cases lead to their deaths. Luckily, security is lax within the airfield, as they did not expect an attack from the inside.
They stage an attack by stealing two trucks, driving them into position, and destroying several fuel trucks by shooting them. The resulting explosions, chain explosions, and fire destroys nearly every plane on the airfield and some of the buildings, dealing a significant blow to the enemy's airforce, making bombing much easier for the New Zealanders.
They make their escape in one of the stolen trucks, and after evading their pursuers, they miraculously slip out of the district by going down to the river, and drifting downstream to the nearby city of Stratton. Here they discover a tribe of feral (and hostile) children (they even dare to mug the group), who have been living on the streets and hiding from enemy troops since the war began.
Ellie also notes that Lee is frequently away from the hide-out within Stratton, and after following him, she is shocked and hurt to see that Lee has established a relationship with an enemy teenage girl named Reni. The book concludes with Lee falling into a trap designed to bring about his capture, and his subsequent rescue by Ellie.
[edit] The Night Is For Hunting
The group, while assisting a small bunch of feral kids, are also discovered by an enemy patrol. They take five of the children and escape back to Hell. The children do not trust them, and their leader (a boy named Gavin) convinces the others to try to escape into the bush. Ellie and the group manage to track them down, but not before one of the kids dies of dehydration. They convince the children that they will be safer with the teenagers in Hell than anywhere else. The exhausted children give in.
To make the kids happy, they decide to celebrate Christmas - which will necessitate a raid on an occupied farmhouse to get supplies. The group is captured but manage to escape (breaking through a car boot and riding a motorbike straight through the farmhouse in the process), and return to Hell to celebrate a happy Christmas. After Christmas, they also establish an informal school, with Lee teaching Arts and Music, Kevin teaching Science, Homer teaching Maths and Ellie and Fi teaching English.
They soon discover, however, that their attack on the airfield made them an even more major target of the enemy. A group of soldiers patrolling near Hell ambushes them, and the group realizes they aren't even safe in Hell anymore.
[edit] The Other Side Of Dawn
The group makes radio contact with Colonel Finley in New Zealand, who sends them a lone SAS soldier named Ryan. Ryan tells them that their armies (New Zealand and Australian) have been planting "misinformation", trying to make the enemy think that they are weakening, that they are losing heart. In reality, they are preparing for one final push, but it could go either way. When the the weather is right, D-Day, the combined Australian and New Zealand counterattack, will commence. This final assault is the one they have all their hopes pinned on, and while the troops are battling on the front line, he wants them to cause as much damage and chaos as possible. Similar behind-the-lines groups in other occupied areas have been given the same task.
He gives them plastic explosives and after an intensive instruction, tells them to continue their guerrilla attacks. Ellie's group also forces him to take the kids back to New Zealand with him, as they would hinder their movement. Ryan grudgingly agrees, and the kids are loaded onto a helicopter with him in the middle of the night. Gavin, however, refuses to go, and is nowhere in sight until the helicopter leaves. He says he was "lost", and ends up staying with the teenagers.
The group moves off to the town of Cavendish, stopping over in Stratton on the way and injuring/killing several soldiers in motorbike patrols. The group then attacks a petrol station, which serves as a hub for all the convoys passing through, and are separated while fleeing. Ellie jumps onboard a train and manages to destroy it and the train tracks with the remaining plastic explosives, but it is packed full of soldiers who pursue her into the bush. She is shot in the leg, and captured.
While in a prison hospital Ellie is told that Lee, Kevin, Homer, and Fi were all killed while trying to escape the petrol station and she despairs, but takes heart in the fact that Gavin's name was not mentioned. She is sent to a POW labor camp, where she uses false name. Later, her true identity as one of the partisans is revealed, putting her life in danger. She manages to escape however, and heads towards the place she thinks her parents are being held captive. On the way, however, the war is declared over - Australia signed a peace treaty with the occupying power, resulting in the formation of a new nation on the continent (a theme further explored in the Ellie Chronicles).
Ellie's life returns to a semblance of normality on her old farm (which is right on the border with the new nation). Although both her parents survived, she is saddened by the death of her friends. The novel takes an upbeat turn when it is discovered that they had survived, and had been placed in a high security prison along with Gavin, and most of the New Zealand commandos who went missing. Her friends return to their old lives as well, and Gavin moves in with Ellie on her farm (his single parent believed killed during the war, and the whereabouts of his sister still unknown). Ellie continues her life as a cattle farmer.
[edit] Characters of the "Tomorrow Series"
Although there are fairly few main characters, the characters depicted in The Tomorrow Series reflect a wide range of personality types and social backgrounds. This is one of the strengths of the series, since most teenagers can strongly associate with at least one or two of the main characters and understand their emotional conflicts.
[edit] Ellie Linton
The story's main protagonist and the series' narrator, Ellie also gradually became the group's leader. She comes from a sheep and cattle property, presumably somewhere in New South Wales or Victoria, though Marsden has said the story's events could have taken place in any Australian state.
A detailed description of her appearance is never given (except that she was "short"), as is the case with many of Marsden's characters. Her character is stubborn, and she rarely seems to back down in an argument or conflict, especially against Homer, with who she has been competing with since a very early age.
The group often looked to Ellie to provide ideas for them, whereas Homer was usually the one who had the energy to carry them out. She moves through several stages as a character and progresses into a harder and less forgiving personality as the series progresses. This escalates quickly after the discovery of Corrie's grave.
However, she finds redemption for her soul later in the series by her interactions with a group of "feral" children who are living wild on the streets of Stratton.
[edit] Corrie Mackenzie
Corrie Mackenzie is Ellie's very best friend, who grew up on a nearby property. Her time in the series is short, however, for she is shot in the back at the conclusion of the first book (Tomorrow when the War Began).
She was driven to the Wirrawee hospital by her boyfriend Kevin, who was subsequently captured. Corrie continued to survive, in a coma, until her death, which is learned of when Lee discovers her grave in the fourth book. Therefore it can be assumed that her death was midway between the third and fourth books.
[edit] Homer Yannos
Homer lives next door to Ellie, on another property, and he is another childhood friend.
His appearance is never described totally, but he is "big" and "strong" and of Greek parentage. He was famous in the Wirrawee district prior to the invasion for his pranks and often dangerous antics, many of which Ellie reflects on during the series; however, when the war comes, he reveals himself as a strong leader.
He guides the group almost single-handedly through the first book and early in the second book. His authority is diminished, however, when the group learns that Homer took a shotgun on one of their guerrilla attacks: the group agreed not to take firearms, as their use was limited and if they were caught with them, they would have been, in Ellie's words, "put against a tree and shot". The incident was a cause of much friction between Homer and Ellie. The ensuing argument between Homer and Ellie was in many ways a true revealer to the characters, not only Homer and Ellie. The diminished respect for Homer does not seem to hurt the group too much however, as Ellie and Robyn are beginning to step up into leadership roles together with Homer.
As the series progresses, however, Homer proves himself again to be an intelligent and integral part of the group.
[edit] Lee
Lee is an introverted, part-Thai part Vietnamese Asian Australian. He plays violin and piano, and is very good at them, and he is also very good at visual arts. His parents owned an Asian restaurant in Wirrawee before the war.
Lee is Ellie's primary love interest, although their relationship was a highly turbulent one. Like Ellie, he becomes colder and more violent, starting with his knife murder of an unconscious enemy soldier who was wounded in a fight with Homer and Ellie. Things get tough for Lee when he learns of his parents' deaths -- this seems to make him more violent than ever. He also seems to find some salvation in the feral kids.
It is interesting to note that of the eight primary characters, only four of them kill directly -- Lee, Ellie, Homer and (arguably) Robyn. As the series wears on, Lee appears to be beginning to find pleasure or at least some form of satisfaction in the killing of enemy soldiers, which would seem to be as a result of his parents' deaths at their hands. Lee becomes more violent after Ellie pushes him away, and to an extent so does Ellie. It would seem that both needed the other's calming influence to remain psychologically stable. However, their relationship recovers to a certain extent later.
[edit] Robyn Mathers
Robyn is a devout Christian and it is clear she is also a very close friend of Ellie's. She is athletic and good at sports, and she is also noted to be very aggressive at them. Of all the characters, Ellie says that with regard to the war Robyn seemed "least affected by it", and Ellie wonders whether her faith had anything to do with this.
Robyn refuses to fire a gun or kill people directly, which creates uncertainty in Ellie's mind about the morality of what they are doing. After Robyn is handed a gun and she puts it down, during a potentially explosive situation, Ellie writes: "...was she right or wrong? If she was right, that made me wrong."
Robyn dies as a martyr when she sacrifices her life to kill Major Harvey with a grenade, allowing the rest of the group to escape to safety in New Zealand.
[edit] Fiona Maxwell
Fiona, or Fi, is pretty, "posh" and knows virtually nothing about camping or living in the bush, something due to the fact that she lived in Wirrawee, in a larger house (her parents were solicitors).
She is frequently frightened by Homer and Ellie's increasing ambition in selecting targets, however she continues to aspire and do her best to help the group. Unlike Ellie and Lee, she does not become colder or more violent -- she strives not only to be brave but also to be true to herself, thus proving her real worth.
[edit] Kevin Holmes
Kevin is Corrie's boyfriend, and he grew up on a property. He is the only one of the characters to have his "'P's" but most of the driving required is done by Ellie, or, on rare occasions, Homer.
His defining trait is that he had some form of nervous breakdown in reaction to the trauma of the war. This was a key plot point for most of the fifth book. After this, there was always an underlying tension between Kevin and the others, especially between Kevin and Ellie, and Kevin and Lee. At the end of the series, he moves to New Zealand.
Kevin is aggressive and big-talking though he backs down often in the face of danger. Like the others, he is angered by the invaders presence in his country and, during a heated exchange about the morality of the invasion and of fighting back, he announces "I hate them...I just hate them and if I had a nuclear bomb I'd drop it right down their throats."
[edit] Chris Lang
Chris joined the group when they found him hiding at his parents' house. Chris was a small, lightly built boy, with light brown hair. His motto was "if it grows, smoke it" a reference to his attitudes towards drugs and alcohol. He writes a lot of poetry, some of which Ellie reads. However his detachment from his surroundings placed an emotional barrier between him and the rest of the group. He asks to be left alone in Hell, to which the group agrees. When they return Chris is missing, and later it is discovered that a drunken Chris, attempting to drive into town to loot alcohol, rolled one of the group's utes, and was killed.
[edit] The Ellie Chronicles - Plot Summaries
[edit] While I Live
The first book in the Ellie Chronicles, While I Live, was released in 2003. Ellie's parents are killed early in the book, and it deals with her attempts to keep the family farm running, warding off both developers and enemy militia crossing over the new border to attack Australian citizens. The nation which invaded is still not specified, nor is it said how much and what areas of the continent the new nation controls. The book was criticized for not being as action-packed as the original series, with one reviewer comparing it to "an episode of McLeod's Daughters.[7]
[edit] Incurable
Incurable (released on November 1, 2005), is the second book in the Ellie Chronicles, which continues on with Ellie Linton's struggle to handle life with Gavin without her parents. Incurable features Gavin more prominently than the previous novel, with more of his past unveiled while also evading death a number of times. While handling Gavin, the Farm and school, Ellie also participates in a guerilla raid with The Liberation, a guerilla group which raids the newly foreign settlement, consisting of original characters like Homer and Lee and new locals added to the story.
[edit] Circle of Flight
The third book in the Ellie Choricles, Circle of Flight, was released on November 1, 2006. It follows Ellie after Gavin is taken from the Linton Farm by vigilante soldiers from across the border. After receiving little help from the Wirrawee police, Ellie calls on the intelligence of Liberation to aid her in finding Gavin.
[edit] Locations
Some locations described in the series are based closely on a number of real life Australian places mainly in the Alpine National Park. Other locations are a pastiche of various typical Australian places. The identifiable areas include:
- Tailor's Stitch - The Crosscut Saw
- Hell - The Terrible Hollow
- Satans Steps - The Devils Staircase
- Wombegonoo - Mount Speculation
- Mount Martin - Mount Howitt
- Wirrawee - Almost any country town, however the nearby bridge is based on the one at Gundagai, New South Wales.
[edit] International publication
The series, while best known in Australia, has also found success in other countries. In Sweden, the first title was selected as the world's most likely book to inspire young people to read, prompting 100,000 free copies to be released for distribution among Swedish young people [8]. The Third Day, the Frost, won the Buxtehude Bulle, a German award, regarded as one of the world's most coveted prizes for young peoples' books.
The books are not as well known in North America as they are in Europe, as only the first three books were available in paperback from US publisher Dell. However, in June 2006, major publisher Scholastic announced it had acquired the rights to both the original series and the later "Ellie Chronicles" spin-off, and would reissue the first two novels the same month. An additional title is scheduled to be released each month, with release of the first two Ellie Chronicles scheduled for 2007. [9]
Marsden's manager, Jill Grinberg, is now reselling the publishing rights in countries where the rights have reverted as well as attempting to sell them into new markets. She has stated that the rights have been sold in Japan to a publisher for a "six-figure deal".[10]
[edit] Tomorrow Movie Projects
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This article or section contains information about one or more scheduled or expected films. The content may change as the film's release approaches and more information becomes available. |  |
The Tomorrow Series has been considered for film production. Marsden sold the rights to bring the series to television/film to Sydney writer and producer Esben Storm. Storm is currently looking for interested overseas investors, because (paraphrased) "the money isn't here in Australia". [11] According to rumors circulating on some forums of the movie website, [attribution needed] filming of the project may occur in late 2007, as some funding may have been found. This however is not confirmed by Esben Storm himself, nor has any other public statement been released by any other film production company, either in Australia or elsewhere.
For more information head to www.tomorrow-movies.com
[edit] Tomorrow Game Projects
The Tomorrow Series has been the source of inspiration for a computer game, and has been set for a release date sometime in 2007. A demo is available for download from the Game's Website. [12]
The game will be available to download for free, intended as a non-profit addition for fans of the books. In the final release however, there will be extra additions, with the inclusion of developer interviews, soundtracks and concept art.
The Game is being created purely for pleasure by Sphere Web Studios, a Web Design Company in the UK [13] with assistance from the Tomorrow Movie Forums [14]. It has no affiliation with the aforementioned Esben Storm film project.
[edit] Critical Reaction
[edit] Awards
Marsden has won numerous awards in Australia and overseas for his work with the Tomorrow Series. [15]
- Bilby Award for Older Readers (Tomorrow, When the War Began)
- CYBER Award (Tomorrow, When the War Began)
- CYBER Award (The Dead of The Night)
- The Secondary Division of the ACT COOL (The Dead of the Night)
- Shortlisted for the Victorian YABBA Awards (The Dead of the Night; The Third Day, the Frost, and The Night is for Hunting)
- Buxtehude Bull (Germany; The Third Day, the Frost, 2000)
- Australian Booksellers' Book of the Year (Burning for Revenge, 1998)
- Shortlisted for Australian Booksellers' Book of the Year (The Night is for Hunting)
- Shortlisted for ACT COOL (The Night is for Hunting)
- WAYBRA Award (The Night is for Hunting)
- YABBA Award (The Other Side of Dawn, 2000)
