Themes
Key
LitCharts assigns a color and icon to each theme in Tomorrow, When the War Began, which you can use to track the themes throughout the work.
War, Law, and Morality
Family, Friendship, and Love
Coming of Age, Transformation, and the Loss of Innocence
Writing and Storytelling
Summary
Analysis
Kevin’s house is much like Ellie and Homer’s—dead dogs, dead birds in cages, and dead lambs. Kevin’s corgi is locked in the laundry room with food and water, however, and he is very happy to see Kevin. They stop to talk in the kitchen. Bicycles will be a much quicker form of transportation and quieter than a car, Robyn suggests, and she asks if they know anyone who doesn’t go to the Show every year. Finding someone who stayed behind is their best bet for some answers. Lee doesn’t think his parents would have gone. They never do, he says.
The fact that Kevin’s corgi is safe and sound inside the house again suggests that something happened at the Show. Kevin’s parents obviously weren’t taken from home. If they had been, the dog likely would not have been taken care of in such a way and would be dead like the dogs left outside on chains. The amount of death they are initially faced with harkens to the obvious death involved in war. Robyn is again the voice of reason and shows maturity beyond her age.
Themes
The group goes to leave, but Kevin insists on bringing his dog. He can’t bear to leave him alone again. They all agree but warn Kevin they might have to abandon the dog later. Kevin agrees and climbs on a bike with the dog. They ride to Corrie’s house, and when Ellie finds Corrie standing in the middle of her empty living room with tears pouring down her face, Ellie knows she will never get the image out of her head.
Corrie is clearly scared. Something awful has happened to her family, and her despair underscores the love that she obviously feels for them. The fact that they may have to abandon the dog later suggests that they may have to make some tough decisions, which will likely be difficult for a group of young teenagers.
Themes
Robyn encourages them to stop and eat. They don’t know when they will next get the chance, she says, and they will need their strength. They choke down sandwiches, and Ellie thinks about town, where danger seems a real possibility. Corrie is the last one who lives in the country, where it seems relatively safe, and Robyn’s house is just on the edge of town. As they leave, Ellie notices a piece of paper in the fax machine and hands it to Corrie. It is a note from Corrie’s dad. Something has happened, Corrie’s dad writes, but he doesn’t know what. Some people are saying it is just “Army manoeuvers,” but he warns Corrie to stay safe and go to the bush and hide.
Robyn continues to show wisdom beyond her years by insisting they all stop to eat. If not for Robyn, they would likely leave without eating, but she forces them to slow down. This extra time allows them a chance to think and eventually notice the fax sitting in the machine. Corrie’s dad’s mention of “Army manoeuvers” implies the takeover is some kind of military operation, which directly points to war, just as Lee has already suggested.
Themes
Corrie and Ellie hold each other and cry. But, Ellie interrupts, they haven’t cried since. They grab Corrie’s bike from the shed and head in the direction of town. As they move closer, Robyn and Lee ride ahead and check intersections before waving the rest of the group through. They ride in complete silence and find Robyn’s house empty like the others. When they leave Robyn’s, it is nearly 1:30 a.m. They look to town from the top of the hill, which is in total darkness, except for the Showground. Ellie knows they must make it to Lee and Fiona’s. It wouldn’t be fair not to check on their parents, too, even though they are sure they won’t find them.
Ellie’s embrace of Corrie reflects their love and friendship, and their tears reflect their fear for their families, whom they clearly love very much. Ellie’s interruption to say that they haven’t cried since this moment suggests they have grown and toughed up since the start of the war. As Ellie is telling their story, she is looking back on their experience, and this puts her in the unique position to assess their behavior and consider what it means.
Themes
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Homer says that they should split up. They need to be out of town before the sun comes up, he warns, and they are running out of time. Plus, Homer continues, if only a few of them are caught by whoever is doing this, it is much better than all of them. Homer offers to go with Fiona to her house; he has always wanted to see the inside of one of the rich houses on the hill, and now is the perfect chance. Robyn agrees it is best to split up and suggests they all put on dark clothes and meet back on the hill at 3:00. Fiona asks what they do if everyone doesn’t come back and suggests they wait until 3:30. If everyone doesn’t make it back by then, they will come back for them once it gets dark again.
Homer obviously volunteers to go with Fiona because he has a crush on her, but he does want to see how the other half lives. Homer is incredibly self-conscious about the differences in his and Fiona’s lifestyles, and he worries Fiona doesn’t like him because of these differences. Seeing Fiona’s house up close will give Homer a better sense of what he is up against in finally winning Fiona’s love. Homer, Robyn, and Fiona each display wisdom and maturity here. They don’t want to split up, but they know it is best.
Themes
Robyn and Lee decide to go check Lee’s house, and Ellie, Kevin, and Corrie head towards the Showground to look around. The Showground is on the other side of town, but Ellie is glad to be moving again. As Ellie walks, she thinks of her parents. Their lives are so unaffected by the outside world. She has seen news coverage of wars, but they all seemed so far away. The only thing from the outside world that managed to affect Ellie’s family was cattle prices. Ellie won’t allow herself to think that her parents are dead, but she does imagine them being held against their will. He father is probably furious and completely disinterested in the language and culture of his captors. Ellie’s mother, of course, is probably keeping everyone calm.
Ellie’s thoughts about her parents reflect the love she has for them, as does her worry that they are dead. This fear, as well as her belief that war is something that happens elsewhere, reflects her young age and naivety. Ellie can’t imagine a life without her parents taking care of her, and her sheltered life at home does not involve the worry of war. Up to now, Ellie has considered her parents and their life in rural Australia the whole world, but she is quickly learning this isn’t the case.
Themes
Kevin breaks Ellie’s thoughts and tells her to keep up. Time is running out, and they still have to make it back to Robyn’s. The Showgrounds are in plain sight, and they begin to move closer. For the first time, Ellie knows what it means to be brave. Up to now, it has all felt like a game, but now Ellie must force herself to sneak up to a nearby tree. As Ellie makes it to the first tree, she feels a surge of courage and jumps from tree to tree, Kevin and Corrie close behind. Ellie suddenly feels like an adult, not some kid playing in the bush.
The extreme circumstances of the war force Ellie to immediately grow up, and being this close to the action has pushed this reality into overdrive. Ellie knows that she isn’t safe, and that there is real danger at the Showground. War isn’t a game, and Marsden implies that in such situations, young people are capable of near instant maturity.
Themes
Near the Showground, Ellie can see guards holding rifles. The grounds are still set up for the Show, and games, rides, and food tents are erected everywhere. The parking lot is full of cars, and Ellie thinks about all the dogs who were probably left in the cars. She hopes someone let them out, at least. They watch the Showground for a few minutes, and Ellie sees one of her old teachers exit a tent and go into a portable toilet. This is where they are holding everyone, Ellie thinks. As they approach the last tree, gunshots ring out into the air. Kevin tells them to run, and they all take off.
The image of men with rifles against the backdrop of the festival is a striking contrast. The tents and rides connote childhood games and levity, but the presence of the armed soldiers connote brutality and war. Ellie’s concern that dogs were left in hot cars to die again underscores her inherent goodness and morality. Ellie’s teacher doesn’t appear to be hurt, and this is a good sign for the other prisoners; however, soldiers clearly aren’t afraid to kill, evident by the ensuing gunfire.
Themes
As she runs next to Kevin and Corrie with bullets whizzing by, Ellie suddenly feels as if they are a family. They run down a residential street, and Kevin leads them into a backyard, which is enclosed with old buildings lining the back. They are trapped, Ellie thinks, as Corrie stops and rubs her leg. She ran into something, Corrie says, and Kevin tells her it was a lawnmower—he almost hit it, too. Terror strikes Ellie, and she looks around. She starts mumbling about the mower and petrol and immediately begins to look for matches or a cigarette lighter. Ellie finds a car in a nearby garage and locates a book of matches.
Ellie’s sudden feeling that Kevin and Corrie are her family reflects the love she has for them, but it also suggests that in the absence of family, friends become family. At this point, all Ellie has are her friends, and they fill the void left by her missing family. Ellie is obviously scared when she realizes they are trapped, but she immediately jumps into action and formulates a plan on the spot, which again suggests she is quickly maturing.
Themes
Ellie goes back to Corrie and Kevin and asks where the lawnmower is. They fan out, looking for the mower, and can hear the soldiers getting closer, speaking a language they don’t recognize. They finally find the mower, and Kevin removes the gas cap. Then he takes off his shirt and soaks it in the tank, leaving a trail of fuel away from the mower and up a brick wall. The soldiers are gaining, and Ellie can hear their footsteps on the gravel. They hide in the darkness until the soldiers come up on the mower, and Ellie strikes a match.
The fact that Ellie and the others don’t recognize what language the soldiers are speaking suggests they are foreign, which means Australia has been invaded by an outside power and is not affected by a civil war. Kevin springs into action, too, and he seems to know what Ellie has planned without speaking. This type of performance under pressure implies that, like Ellie, Kevin is maturing on the spot as well.
Themes
The match doesn’t light, and Kevin mouths for Ellie to strike another one. She does, and it flames, but Ellie drops it too quickly. Luckily, the fuel ignites anyway, and a loud whooshing sound fills the air. Kevin drags Ellie behind the brick wall just as the mower explodes, shrapnel and flames flying everywhere. Kevin yells for them to run, and they head in the direction of Robyn’s house.
Ellie is terrified as she strikes the match, and she can barely do what is expected of her. This implies that even though Ellie is rising to the challenge of the war, she is still in a situation that no teenager could ever be prepared for.
Themes
By the time Kevin, Ellie, and Corrie make it back to the hill by Robyn’s house, Fiona and Homer are already there, but there is no sign of Robyn and Lee. They wait until 3:35 and then reluctantly climb on the bikes. They can’t wait any longer, so they peddle out of town “like bats out of Hell.”
They linger until 3:35, despite their previous plan to leave at 3:30 sharp, which reflects their reluctance to leave their friends behind. Marsden’s language and the description of the kids peddling “like bats out of Hell,” is ironic; They have just come from Hell, and readers can infer that they will probably go back, especially given Corrie’s dad’s warning to go to the bush.
Themes
