What is it about mazes that is so intriguing? Maybe it’s that they harken back to carefree childhood activity fun, or perhaps it’s some shared archetypal memory of our own personal minotaur lurking through the labyrinth of life we’re seeking to journey through? Is it a vicarious feeling of escaping some situation or place we’d rather not be, personal growth, change, or maybe the personal satisfaction from having a goal and solving the challenge?
For over 4,000 years, labyrinths & mazes have been around and inspired dozens of different rituals & symbols, ultimately becoming a symbol of the human experience and a metaphor for life’s journey.
“Minos resolved to banish his shame from the house and to close it up in a sinister edifice with many chambers. Daedalus created the work with the art of the most celebrated masters. And he fitted out its chambers with deceptive signs; into the windings of the muddled tangling passages he misled the eye.” - Ovid, Metamorphoses
in his latest edition of Weekly Geekly Rundown, his opening segment talks about AI and mechanical maze solving rats! Here’s a cool video he found about “The Fastest Maze-Solving Competition on Earth”:
Mazes & Labyrinths have inspired spiritual pilgrimages, music, meditation, recreation, and have become a part of our common vocabulary - “amaze”, “labyrinthine”, “lost in a maze” - even “meandering” which comes from the Greek “Maiandros”, a literal river that came to mean a winding course.
“Meander” or “Greek Key” on an ancient Greek vase (~750 BCE)- What does the pattern remind you of?
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And, oh, the benefits of labyrinths & mazes! Benefits, whether bodily walking through walled or hedged or wall-less floor patterned styles - or penciling/finger-tracing with the paperly or handheld versions - include self-discovery, transformation, and fulfillment.
According to the book, “The Curious History of Mazes” (a most wonderful book by the way):
“Mazes are for those who want to tune in to their innate sense of curiosity. Meditate, learn, and reconnect with your sense of fun.”
And speaking of fun, let’s get to the core subject of this week’s newsletter - The Dragonmaster gamebook!
I warn you though, we will take many a meander on our journey today, weaving together cultural pit stops, related bric-a-brac and maze-like wisdom wherever the muse insists.
Here we go . . .
It wasn’t very long ago I came upon for the first time the 1985 book, “The Dragonmaster”. It’s labelled as a “WHAT-DO-I-DO-NOW” book, as well as “YOUR AMAZING adventures”.
What-Do-I-Do-Now books also included the Zork series!
I don’t recall seeing this “YOUR AMAZING adventure” series as a kid, so was excited to experience what I missed.
I really dug the back cover:
“You hold the fate of the kingdom in your hands. Seek your truest path, through mazes of dragons, castle, dungeons, magical wilderness and the ultimate test of the dragnomaster’s lair.”
Reading through it was fun. It was mostly story, and no choices in the sense of the typical gamebook, “do you want to do this or this?”
The “choices” were determined by where you wound up in each of the 12 mazes throughout the book.
“Find your way from the tavern to the Northstar. But be careful. There may be more of the dragonmaster’s assassins hiding in the shadows. And remember what it says on page 5.”
“Thou mayst not wander in that labyrinth: There Minotaurs and ugly treason lurk.” - from Henry IV Part One by William Shakespeare, 1597
“Steer your way through the maze of sea monsters. Be careful. One wrong turn and they will gobble you up - ship and all.”
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(Featuring artwork from Clyde Caldwell & Luke Eidenschink!)
“Find your way through the illusion maze. Be careful. Remember what Warkus said about the dangers of an illusion maze under a mountain.”
It was a neat dynamic. Each maze has a starting point with 2-3 possible destinations, indicated by page numbers. You have a general idea of which number you’re supposed to steer towards based on the maze instructions, but not always.
Here’s what’s interesting: Only one of those 2-3 is the choice that leads to the continuation of the story.
Basically, you need to solve the maze by guessing the one correct exit to advance the story. So, there really aren’t any branching paths.
The other possible destinations on the mazes, you ask?
They lead to death. Every. Single. Time.
So, you either proceed through the story, one maze at a time, until the end . . . or you die.
The death pages kindly include text to get you back to the last maze page where you can try again, though!
Interesting discovery about the gaming mechanics/page layout:The book narrative pages are even linear. As you conquer each maze, you advance to the next page, so that the entire story is the first 90% of the book. Only when your maze spelunking leads to the “other” destinations are you asked to flip to what I’m calling the “death-pages”, that are all in order at the back of the book. Which leads me to my [SPOILER] gamebook hack . . .
Gamebook Hack:Knowing this gives a sort of cheat for the mazes. Aim for the page number in the maze that’s closest to the page you’re currently on!
“Fountains grotesque, new trees, bespangled caves, Echoing grottos, full of tumbling waves And moonlight; aye, to all the mazy world Of silvery enchantment!” - from Endymion by John Keats, 1818
Your character in this book is simply “an Adventurer” - gender-neutral, with no name or backstory other than having gone on adventures with the rest of the posse that accompanies you on this one.
There are encounters with assassins, naval ships, dragons, shapeshifters, sea monsters, desert worms, snakes, armies . . . even a spaceship - and of course, the Dragonmaster!
“But the universe to the eye of human understanding is framed like a labyrinth.” - from The Great Instauration by Francis Bacon, 1620
The worldbuilding & event coherence were in many ways irrational, but that’s to be expected for a kids’ book mostly in the vein of the CYOA variety. I did like that the characters referenced a few of the events from the 1st book in the series, “The Castle of Doom”, which makes this world seem more coherent and gives a sense of continuity - and makes me want to track it down to read.
The Dragonmaster’s (Unintended) Flat-Earth Disproving Theory from 1985 (pg. 72): “Far down below the ship, is the surface of the Earth. The horizon curves in an arc ahead of you. ’We are indeed high up!” exclaims Warkus, as he reaches your side. ‘I have heard that the Earth is like a giant ball in space and now that I see that it must be true.’ ’But the Earth is flat!’ Thea protests. As flat as a pancake.’ ’Look out there yourself,’ Warkus says.
The Dragonmaster says, “Flat-earthers, don’t be fooled by the curvature of the Earth. Join my army and we shall conquer this 2-dimensionally flat world once and for all!”
I enjoyed several of the illustrations, done by Paul Abrams in this book. It looks like he also illustrated the entire series, both covers and interior. I especially like his dragons!
“Journey not to escape but rather move toward a deeper understanding of the challenges that you face, be they small or large. This is not about running away. Labyrinths and mazes emulate life, and as with life, the road is never straight.” - Dr. Julie E. Bounford from “The Curious History Of Mazes”
And these other illustrations:
About Paul Abrams:Paul has credits for 15 different gamebooks, including 3 interiors for the Choose Your Own Adventure series and 5 from Blackstone’s Magic (and Magical) Adventures where he did a mix of interior and cover art.
Interior by Paul Abrams - cover by Ralph Reese (courtesy of gamebooks.org)
Interior illustrations by Paul (courtesy of gamebooks.org)
Do you want to learn how to make your own mazes?Jerry Joe Seltzer does an awesome job in his super-affordable Udemy course, “Making Mazes”. I did it a few years ago and had a blast! It’s so fun to then teach kids and grandkids.
Not listed if this cover is Paul’s, so we’ll give him the credit! (courtesy of gamebooks.org)
Do you remember how BIG Blackstone the Magician was in the 80s? I used to have his magic set which was one of the coolest things EVER made for a kid. Trick thumb, tapered (stripper) deck of cards, prop glass (for an invisible coin trick) . . . and the box itself converted into your magic presentation table!
“All literary influence is labyrinthine; belated authors wander the maze as if an exit could be found, until the strong among them realize that the windings of the labyrinth are all internal.” - Harold Bloom, American critic
The author of “The Dragonmaster”, Richard Brightfield not only did the writing, but created the cool terrain mazes for the entire series.
About Richard Brightfield:Richard was a prolific and one of the most famous Choose Your Own Adventure writers, having 17 titles of that series to his name! He also had 8 titles of the Young Indiana Jones Chronicles CYOA books, as well as many others. He wrote 43 gamebooks in all.
Richard was born in 1927 and is living in Palm Beach County, Florida. That makes him 96 years old, and one of the oldest living authors today! If you happen to live in that area and see him, make sure to thank him for joy he brought to millions of kids with his books.
(courtesy of gamebooks.org)
(courtesy of gamebooks.org)
“Then we got into a labyrinth, and, when we thought we were at the end, came out again at the beginning, having still to see as much as ever.” - from Euthyphro by Plato, 395 BCE
Another (the first?) Brightfield & Abrams team up! Abrams did the interior illustrations - Paul Granger did this cover (courtesy of gamebooks.org)
Young Indiana Jones CYOA (courtesy of gamebooks.org)
You love Indiana Jones? Check out this recent Rediscovered Realms article:
Being a child of the ‘80s, I recall many great action movies, but few have captured my heart and imagination like the adventures of Indiana Jones. He was everything that I, my brother, and tens-of-millions of others wanted to be. Adventurous, smart, confident, lucky, tough, educated, a magnet to the ladies, and infused with a healthy dose of roguish humo…
There are a total of 6 books in the “YOUR AMAZING adventures” maze gamebook series. It changed its name to “YOUR MAZE adventures” for books 5 and 6. What a cool concept and fun books - I’m so glad I finally got to play!
Your AMAZING (MAZE) Adventures Series (pics courtesy of gamebooks.org)
Well, there you have it. We’ve meandered through to the end of this week’s Rediscovered Realms newsletter, safely exiting the labyrinth at the intended point of departure. I hope you enjoyed it and also hope I could inspire a little imagination and wonder for your coming week.
“I imagined a labyrinth of labyrinths, a maze of mazes, a twisting, turning, ever-widening labyrinth that contained both past and future and somehow implied the stars.” - Jorge Luis Borges, 1941
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I'm a big gamebook fan and you've mentioned a couple here I've never heard of and will definitely be hunting down.