Dancing with the Natives is philosophical novel about adolescence. Metaphorically it describes how adolescents experience their lives and how adults come to respectfully dance with them.

Adolescence is not unlike living on a remote island-a place of isolation and separation from adults. No matter how well intentioned, adults are perceived as invaders. Like doctors arriving by airplane to a place that has never seen either medicine or flying machines, trust needs to be earned through learning the natives' dance before goodwill is accepted.

The same is true with the relationships between...