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A review by the_evergrowing_library
The Clan of the Cave Bear by Jean M. Auel
4.0
Occasionally I love to pick up a book I’ve never heard of, or seen any hype for(though this book has done well in its time apparently) and dive straight in. This was worth the gamble.
A little cro-magnon(early human) girl gets separated from her kin and is adopted by a Neanderthal clan. That’s basically the whole book, no bigger narrative plot.
That in itself though is really quite fascinating. It was interesting to read about the differences between these people and how they went about things such as religion, gender roles, speech/communication etc. I especially liked their concepts of pregnancy and death.
The writing was quite dense in regards to what there was to take in, but it really added to the level of immersion with regards to their ways and tools etc…. I have not bothered to research historical accuracy for any of it, but I would imagine Auel herself likely did extensive research.
Ayla was a fascinating character and I really enjoyed some of the other characters with regards to their levels of acceptance of differences and change within the Clan as it really felt diverse and at times problematic for their cultures.
A little cro-magnon(early human) girl gets separated from her kin and is adopted by a Neanderthal clan. That’s basically the whole book, no bigger narrative plot.
That in itself though is really quite fascinating. It was interesting to read about the differences between these people and how they went about things such as religion, gender roles, speech/communication etc. I especially liked their concepts of pregnancy and death.
The writing was quite dense in regards to what there was to take in, but it really added to the level of immersion with regards to their ways and tools etc…. I have not bothered to research historical accuracy for any of it, but I would imagine Auel herself likely did extensive research.
Ayla was a fascinating character and I really enjoyed some of the other characters with regards to their levels of acceptance of differences and change within the Clan as it really felt diverse and at times problematic for their cultures.