Rosamund Lupton delivers a powerful & beautifully written novel about survival & bravery that kept me thinking if i had as much courage as these year 12 students had at a school in Somerset high school in England, the principal Mr Marr lies critically injured in the library two students know first aid as its compulsory for their year, the girl Hannah covers herself over him she takes off her hoody but silence is the best option as a gunman remains at large in the corridor. Rafi calls the headmaster to warn him something horrible is about to happen. His call occasionally starts amber alert and BANG! The gun blast breaks the silence. The school is already under the siege. This is an amazing book from an outstanding author. The start of the book is extremely dramatic and tense with students and teachers hiding in classrooms and the school theatre from gunmen and there are some superb images such as children piling books against the library door to prevent entry. This is every parents, teachers and students nightmare but the book goes deeper into issues that are so pertinent and relevant that from time to time I had to pause in the reading to reflect.

Yes the story is ripped straight from a headline you hope never to see again. This has been done before you may say. No. Not like this. Not with this immersive level of quality in the prose, in the characters, in the overall impact of it. I cried for our society when I was done, I also believed in it. The weather is almost a character itself within story line - as it's instrumental in obstructing police surveillance and causing severe delays when it comes to bringing the siege to an end. Toddlers should be physically active every day for at least 180 minutes (3 hours). The more the better. This should be spread throughout the day, including playing outdoors.It's emotional and raw in places leaving your heart breaking, but inspiring and courageous in others allowing our hearts to soar with hope and love. Three hours from sundown is close to the end of a day. Returning home ("to the cave") from whatever meaningless existence the characters have - they reflect on what their lives are for. It is a rather dark, uncomforting song, but then so is the quest for the meaning of your life. It's tumultuous, full of panic, but underlying it all is compassion. Rosamund Lupton may write about horror, but the message she wants to get across is a positive one. We see what strength it demands from people to survive a harrowing situation like that and we get to read about acts of selflessness and pure bravery. We flip between numerous characters, from the students and teachers to the police officers and detectives hired to deal with the situation.

An alternative is also that one minute is approximately zero point zero zero six times three hours. Conversion table hours to minutes chart We’re taking our first steps into the school located in Somerset woodlands and welcoming an ordinary school day: students in their classrooms: old school and new school mingled together: theater group is getting ready for the rehearsal of Macbeth, some of the children joining their pottery class as some of them are at the library.Although the timeline for this story is short, it delivers a chilling and mesmerising read. A tale of courage in adversity. Loved how the drama teacher encourages the pupils to rehearse their play Macbet, to keep their minds off this dangerous situations. The conversion factor from hours to seconds is 3600, which means that 1 hour is equal to 3600 seconds:

This story is fast paced and terrifying at times, I held my breath scared to read on!! I think this book is hard hitting as we have all read in the news about shootings happening in schools so I can definitely relate to it.

Hours Between Two Dates

Students mingled between Old School and New School; their various classes drew them toward the classrooms. The rehearsal of Macbeth was that morning; the children in the pottery class with their teacher; the library would have other students working. But it was the call from Rafi to the headmaster that started the amber alert. Then the gunshot which meant red alert; police assembled with helicopters and tactical response teams – all controlled by two gunmen. Three hours of terror, uncertainty, courage and bravery. Rafi and Basi, Syrian refugees, are central: it’s Rafi, aged 16, who spots the first bomb (merely a taster of the horrors to come) and who, with remarkable sangfroid, tells the headmaster to evacuate the junior school. Rafi brought Basi, his eight-year-old brother, from Syria after most of their family was killed, bearing his father’s copy of Macbeth (his father would quote from it, seeing Syria as a “suffering country under a hand accursed”). Powerful, heavy topics are described; the fear, the tension, and suspense, but I was unable to engage with the characters, the emotions, and heroic acts of courage. After a promising beginning, this was a dramatic, topical story that plodded along and fell flat for me. Instead of feeling the drama, I became a detached observer. So many characters and perspectives were introduced that it was confusing to recall who everyone was and where they were located. I was not feeling connected with the characters in the way I wanted to be. I read about the actions of various teachers, the unbelievable calm of most of the school children, the helplessness of their parents, and the police proceedings.