Introducing ["Beat of the City"] her tale of youngsters in search of identity in an Australian metropolis, H. F. Brinsmead observes, "In Melbourne that year the way-outs were in." For Melbourne read New York or San Francisco and this teen-age shibboleth seems no less appropriate….

[The] author describes her native land vividly and often lyrically. But the more reflective reader will find Mrs. Brinsmead's swiftly moving narrative rarely pauses to give a penetrating look into either teenagers themselves or the symbols of their aspirations.