"Beyond the Reef" is about the South Pacific Island of Samoa and its people where the author lived and worked for 14 years as a Teacher, Bookshop Manager and a travelling Inspector of Village Schools. During that time he was expected to be proficient in the Samoan language and understand its culture and customs. He reflects on the manner in which these Polynesian people responded to a succession of onslaughts by representatives of the White Man's world, explorers, traders, missionaries, colonial servants and a horde of American troops during the 2nd World War. The author arrived in Samoa in 1954.