Beyond the Labyrinth (Puffin books) [Paperback]

Gillian Rubinstein (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1988 | Series: Puffin books

Fourteen-year-old Brenton questions the choices in his life when an alien anthropologist arrives to study an ancient Aboriginal tribe that once lived in the area around his home.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Winner of the Australian Children's Book Council 1989 Book of the Year award, this dark, foreboding story is about two children--and several adults--who feel trapped by their lives. The one thing Vicky and Brenton have in common is the feeling that they are surrounded by aliens. Vicky, staying with Brenton's family for the summer while her parents are in Africa, feels completely unwelcome. Meanwhile Brenton closets himself away, scorning his family's blatant disregard for the world's problems--primarily, the threat of nuclear war. When the pair discovers a real alien living on the beach near their house, they begin to share a powerful secret that could change their lives. Rubenstein offers the reader a choice of endings, echoing the format of a game that figures heavily in the plot. This, however, runs the risk of diffusing the story's impact: the sensitive reader who has persevered through the weighty, somewhat despairing build-up may feel manipulated into choosing the "right" ending. At times suspenseful and provocative, this is not a novel for the faint of heart. Ages 12-up.
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Brenton Trethewan, 14, is so alienated from his shallow, materialistic Australian family--and from society in general--that he throws dice to make his daily life decisions; he feels powerless and is unwilling to accept responsibility for his actions. When his cousin Victoria comes to stay with his family, she meets a mysterious, homeless, dark-skinned girl named Cal on the beach. Brenton's family reacts to Victoria's new friend with suspicion and hostility, but Brenton is more positive. Gradually, he learns that Cal is a visiting anthropologist from an advanced civilization who has been caught in a time-machine error. As she and Brenton draw emotionally closer to one another, Cal develops a life-threatening infection and decides that she must return home; human medicine would kill her. And Brenton is forced to make a decision about whether to go back with her. Rubinstein then asks readers to make Brenton's decision by throwing dice, and develops two different and telling endings to the story. A host of important issues are raised in this strangely intriguing and offbeat story--racism, free will, personal responsibility, cultural relativism, and extraterrestrial life. However, while Brent, Cal, and Vicky are believably developed, the other characters are implausibly shrill or silly in their extreme reactions to Brenton and Cal. Also, because so much is left unexplained about Cal's so-called advanced civilization, many readers will wonder what makes Cal's world so much better than our own imperfect one. Readers brought up on the "choose your own adventure" stories might be engaged by the novel's clever and provocative dual endings, but many will not get beyond the improbable and slow-moving labyrinths of the narrative. --Jack Forman, Mesa College Library, San Diego
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Puffin (December 1988)
• ISBN-10: 0140343385
• ISBN-13: 978-0140343380
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,356,170 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars "ET" and Dungeons and Dragons meet Albert Camus, March 29, 2000

By 

Elizabeth Sutherland (Melbourne, Australia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Beyond the Labyrinth (Hardcover)

"Beyond the Labyrinth" is a refreshingly intelligent book for teenagers, offering much to both strong and reluctant readers alike.

Dealing with "the big issues" of environmental disaster, family disharmony, third world poverty, death and sexuality, Rubinstein offers a heady mix of realism and science fiction.

When her teenage protagonists meet an androgynous alien named Cal, they are offered a new, apparently objective view of human life. This encourages the reader to question notions of gender identity as well as bringing racial prejudices and family dynamics to the fore.

"Beyond the Labryinth" allows for an unusual level of reader interaction with the text. In "Choose Your Own Adventure" style, the reader is asked to throw the dice in order to choose one of two seperate endings. This is an engaging tactic which helps to draw the teenage reader in, at the same time allowing for a greater complexity of meaning.

"Beyond the Labyrinth" is a rewarding read from one of Australia's finest writers for young people. It raises interesting questions for teenage readers and their parents alike.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 1989 Book of the Year for Older Children, October 30, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Beyond the Labyrinth (Hardcover)

Named 1989 Book of the Year for Older Children by the Australian Children's Book Council.
The author writes an adventurous, fast moving tale of a young man, Brenton Trethewan, who's favorite past time is reading "Choose Your Own Adventure" books --a toss of the dice decides the ending. Brenton tosses the dice to determine all of life's choices. In this story "Fourteen-year-old Brenton learns to question the choices in his life when an alien anthropologist arrives to study an ancient aboriginal tribe that once lived in the area around his home." Toss the dice yourself to discover the ending to this story.