Because Strasser is very concerned about today's young adults and their reading he has repeatedly made a point of stressing the necessity of giving them contemporary books written in a contemporary style about issues teenagers will find interesting—in short, books they will enjoy. Because of this goal, he puts special emphasis on the subject matter of his novels. As many other young adult authors do, he insists on truthfulness and relevance with regard to subject matter and theme.

In Beyond the Reef Strasser puts into practice his credo by depicting problems which are of major interest to contemporary teen-agers. It is first of all the conflicts within the Cooper family that many readers can identify with.

The behavior of the protagonist who finds himself in a mediating position between his parents sets an example for how to cope with family conflicts in a mature...