In the follow on from the ‘The Clan of the Cave Bear’, we are re-introduced to the gritty Ayla who has been forced away from those she loves by prejudice between the two kinds of human beings that inhabit the Earth after the Last Ice Age, Neanderthal and Cro-Magnon. As she forages through unfamiliar lands, the young woman finds a place of safety and refuge in a beautiful valley. It is in this place that the ingenuity and forward-thinking of Ayla is revealed to us fully. As she develops her routine and livelihood in this valley, creating companions in the animals that were in the valley previous to her arrival, the pretty female finds herself longing for the fellowship and love of one of her own kind. Destiny takes pity on the young woman and causes her path to cross with that of the desirable man, Jondalar. His introduction to her world causes a conflict of emotions that Ayla finds difficult to understand and control. How will she cope in this sudden, new world of uncertainty? Jean Auel reveals all to us in a descriptive and thoroughly imaginative tale of a young woman’s fight against the changing world. The imagination of the author in this story is absolutely incredible and the ideas that are sown brilliantly into the story should receive an award on their own. Brought into context by the book completes the formula for an incredible novel that should be read by many. It is a book that would be recommendable to anyone 18+ or to any extremely comprehensive younger reader. It is a story that consistently absorbs the reader fully with the images created through the words on the page, a skill that few can claim to have. All in Auel, this is a terrific novel.
By Douglas, 15
