After the First Death

After the First Death
Author(s)	Robert Cormier
Original title	After the First Death
Translator	none
Country	United States
Language	English
Genre(s)	Young Adult, Psychological Thriller
Publication date	1979
Media type	Print
Pages	233
ISBN	0440208351
OCLC Number	23153589

After the First Death (1979) is a suspense novel for young adults by American author Robert Cormier. The focus is on the complex relationships that develop between the various characters.

Synopsis

After the First Death describes the terrorist hijacking of a summer camp bus full of children. The main characters include Kate, a high school student driving the bus, Miro, one of the terrorists, and Ben, the son of a general for an anti-terrorism group. The story is mostly written from the point of view of Kate, Miro and Ben, switching back and forth, and brief sections are told from the point of view of some other characters.

Kate is driving the bus when it is hijacked by four terrorists, Miro, Artkin, Antibbe and Stroll. The terrorists force Kate to drive the bus to an old, worn-down railroad bridge, where a drawn-out siege begins, the terrorists threatening to kill one child for every attack by the police or death of a terrorist. The terrorists are working to "free" their homeland, which is never named specifically but could be assumed from their descriptions to be a Middle Eastern, or African Country.^{[citation needed]}

==Themes

The various themes explored in the texts include the parallel made through the father-son relationship between Ben,the General, Miro and Artkin. Some of these themes are Courage, Survival, Resilience, Sacrifice,Endurance,and being wise.