Two particular things I disliked about this book was when Joella finally found out that they were in fact still on Earth and also the fact that Bro Rabbit could mysteriously talk. In Galax-Arena, patwa is the only means of communication between the multi-racial children performers. The writing style of Gillian Rubinstein was hugely descriptive in detail, paying much attention to descriptive passages of the characters’ surroundings, which in turn lets the reader gain a much deeper understanding and picture of the scenes in the book.Īnother interesting feature of this book is the use of the fictional contact language called patwa (a mix of slang words, English and Spanish). Where we are driven to the point of obsession with vanity and selfishness, to the point that all we ever care about are ourselves and being rich. Galax-Arena was written in 1992, not very long before the 21st century, but perhaps what Gillian Rubinstein was actually doing was envisioning an Earth we inhabit, in the not so distant future. Most of us just continue aimlessly on into this never ending rat race, oblivious to the dire and real situations parts of our world are in, which brings us to the themes of this story. In today’s fast-paced world, we hardly realise what’s actually happening out of our information sphere.

This book tackles many controversial issues in today’s society, such as child exploitation, cultural division, poverty and competition/survival. It revolves around the Galax-Arena, a fictional “performance” ground on the planet Vexak where children perform death-defying tricks and acrobatics routines, all for the pleasure of the inhabitants of the planet, the Vexa. It is generally set in Australia and is of an adventure/science-fiction genre.Ī recount told through the eyes of the main protagonist Joella, this book is set along the span of several months. It was written by the award winning author Gillian Rubinstein (also goes by the pseudonym Lian Hearn) and was first published in 1992.

Galax- Arena is an epic tale combining both real-life and science fiction elements alike.

Galax-Arena by Gillian Rubinstein