Two More Great Reads

I love Caroline Cooney's books and I found a great new one to read this summer. If The Witness Lied presents a family filled with tragedy. First the mother dies with the birth of her fourth child Tris. Then in a horrible accident the family car rolls over the father killing him. The only one in the car at the time of the accident is Tris who somehow as a two-year-old was able to release the emergency brake causing the accident. After the accident the family split apart. Smithy goes away to boarding school, Madison goes to leave with her godparents, and Jack stays at home with Tris and his Aunt Cheryl who delights in completely remodeling the family home. One year after the accident Aunt Cheryl has contacted a TV producer who wants to do a series on the tragic family. The siblings are appalled, and come together to protect Tris, about to celebrate his third birthday, from the media. With all that is going on, Jack begins to question the circumstances of the accident and wonders what really happened. Part mystery, part media spectacle, Cooney has again captured a story that could be right out of the headlines.
Tragedy on a larger scale is presented in John Marsden's Tomorrow, When the War Began. Set in Australia, the story follows a group of teenagers who go off on a camping trip for five days in a wild area called Hell. When they return they find their world has changed for the worse. Some unknown army has taken over their rural community and apparently all of Australia. All the teens' parents and community are imprisoned and the teens are on their own. After a terrifying expedition to check on their homes, the teen decide to retreat back to Hell and to plan their next move. Should they hide out until the world returns to normal or should they take action and mount a guerrilla war against the invaders?