A grim, tenacious story of survival pits a group of Australian teenagers against the nameless invaders of their country - an enemy born of contemporary political and social strife. A narrative told with gripping immediacy details how the youth's shock, fear, desperation and outrage evolves into a calculated plan of attack against the invaders, and the devastating realization that they only have one another on which to rely. (Ages 13 and older)

When Ellie and six of her friends return home from a camping trip deep in the bush, they find things hideously wrong -- their families gone, houses empty and abandoned, pets and stock dead. Gradually they begin to comprehend that their country has been invaded and everyone in the town has been taken prisoner. As the horrible reality of the situation becomes evident they have to make a life-and-death decision: to run back into the bush and hide, to give themselves up to be with their families, or to stay and try to fight. This reveting, tautly-drawn novel seems at times to be only a step away from today's headlines.