Tomorrow When The War Began

( not the original cover, apparently it's too old for the Internet!)

Hidden away between  my adult favourites, the Steinbecks, the Atwoods and others, are a few Young Adult gems from my awkward teen years.

However, only one series of books (seven in total!) sent me racing off to the library, wrestling, bargaining and stashing its titles out of the keen grasps of other mid teens.

Tomorrow When The War Began.

Imagine, you and you friends set off camping over a long weekend  and return to your quiet country town only to discover that the nation has been invaded! You must fight any way you can to save the country!

So here is the formula for any struggling YA author who was looking for a quick fix:

Teenagers + Guns + Action + Angst + Romance =  Teens descending into hair pulling, name calling, any chore that would turn a profit and non stop conversation over lunch for about five years.

John Marsden, Australian YA author par excellence, really found his stride with these books which have gone on to sell nearly as many copies as the Bible in Australia.

Marsden, who had always been quite cautious of TV or film adaptions, has finally given the nod and the first film will be released in September.

The Australian film industry probably deals with the same issues many small to medium size entertainment industries do ( e.g - lack of international exposure and limited budget) but with such a well known series there will be an unusually high level of exposure.

This is helped by fans of the teenage series writing about it in their adult blogs.

Tomorrow When The War Began has an offical website - http://www.twtwb.com/ with a trailer and a few sneak peeks.