An Unexpected Hero

What could be worse, Matt Turner wonders, than having to leave your parents, friends and the buzz of big city life for a remote rural school that’s so small it only has two classrooms, and two teachers who are married to each other?

The twelve-year old soon finds out that worse things can happen. A school project plunges him into his worst nightmare – he has to make a speech in public.

Matt decides to speak about New Zealand’s First World War pacifist, Archibald Baxter.

But is that a good idea in a district where almost every family has lost someone to war?


Respond to the Book
Use a whole a page in your journal to present your thinking so far about this story.  You can add some drawings, symbols, or relevant icons to the page.

Something I've discovered about war because of this story is...

Some questions I now have because of ideas in this book include...

I think Archie is / isn't a hero because...

Something that shocked me or surprised me in the story is...

Bullying behaviour I've noticed in the story includes...