The Beginning Place

Rating:
Summary: An Eerie, "Twilight Zone" style story hides "Literature"
Review: I read this book as a teenager. At the time, I did not realize the protagonist was 20 years old. (I thought he was a young teen). I am a huge fan of books of the "character from our world goes to a magical other world" format. This books starts out like that model, but has an eerie quality, like "Tales from the Crypt" but more subtle. In the end, it becomes a bitter-sweet story about growing up that was very powerful (and which I would not have read if I had not been lured in by the fantasy elements).

Rating:
Summary: Tembreabrezi people as Native Americans?
Review: I received this book as a gift in 1991, when I was in middle school. Now that I am a sophomore in college, I am returning to this book to do a 10-page paper for my American Literature class. I was curious ... did anyone else see Irene and the people of Tembreabrezi as Native American-type characters? They are often mentioned to have "dark faces" (p. 61, the Master's face was "dark as the embers of the fire") and "dark eyes", with "swarthy" skin (p. 51). Did anyone else see this? Hugh's white skin is repeatedly mentioned, and he IS an intruder on the private stream. Any feedback would help me with my paper. All in all, I love the book and will continue to reread it!

Rating:
Summary: Tembreabrezi people as Native Americans?
Review: I received this book as a gift in 1991, when I was in middle school. Now that I am a sophomore in college, I am returning to this book to do a 10-page paper for my American Literature class. I was curious ... did anyone else see Irene and the people of Tembreabrezi as Native American-type characters? They are often mentioned to have "dark faces" (p. 61, the Master's face was "dark as the embers of the fire") and "dark eyes", with "swarthy" skin (p. 51). Did anyone else see this? Hugh's white skin is repeatedly mentioned, and he IS an intruder on the private stream. Any feedback would help me with my paper. All in all, I love the book and will continue to reread it!

Rating:
Summary: Fantasy Book opens my eyes!
Review: In this book, Hugh is the main character. He is a 20 year old man who lives with his mom. His mom verbally abuses him. One day he gets mad and runs out and tumbles going through a gate. It transports him into another dimension. In the dimension, he learns what love is all about. He also finds a girl who is just like him. The girls world is in darkness and they need to kill a beast to help them. Will he survive or die trying? Read and find out.
I did like this book because it relates to other realms. I love fantasy and this book contains a lot. It's a very good book although I would only recommend this book to 9th graders and up, because it does contain some sexual contents.

Rating:
Summary: Fantasy Book opens my eyes!
Review: In this book, Hugh is the main character. He is a 20 year old man who lives with his mom. His mom verbally abuses him. One day he gets mad and runs out and tumbles going through a gate. It transports him into another dimension. In the dimension, he learns what love is all about. He also finds a girl who is just like him. The girls world is in darkness and they need to kill a beast to help them. Will he survive or die trying? Read and find out.
I did like this book because it relates to other realms. I love fantasy and this book contains a lot. It's a very good book although I would only recommend this book to 9th graders and up, because it does contain some sexual contents.

Rating:
Summary: Read it when you need to
Review: When I read this as an adolescent, I felt like someone else knew how I felt. Adolescents hardly ever feel this way. This is a great book for anyone who just wants to get away from his life. The end surprises you by showing you the only way to really escape.