Rating: 
Summary: Oh My this is a bad book!
Review: What is going on with series, these days? Is there a publishing rule that says they must descend into unreadable pap? Clan of the Cave Bear was so fun, not great literature but still compelling. With the introduction of Jondalar the Endowed it has gone downhill. How does Auel manage to make such graphic sex scenes boring? It is an art. Read Clan of the Cave Bear. Then stop.
Rating:
Summary: No plot.
Review: I loved The Clan of the Cave Bear, but the successive books degenerated, and this one is the worst of the lot. The characters have become more or less one-dimensional, and Auel is much too fond of them, especially Ayla, who is too good at everything. This problem could be overcome if she had some character flaws, but by this point in the series, she really doesn't have much character at all. The biggest problem with this book, aside from its casting of Ayla and Jondalar as the universal saviours of prehistoric mankind, is its lack of plot. It's really nothing more than a series of episodes, each of which could stand alone; there really isn't much more to the book than how these people get from one place to another. The major underlying plot crisis seems to be the apparently inability of Ayla and Jondalar to conceive a child, but since we already know that this is because Ayla is taking contraceptives, where is the drama? And why does Auel feel the need to stretch out the length of the book by providing five-page sex scenes in each chapter? I don't mind sex scenes if they're part of the plot, but in this book they're quite unnecessary, and it's really rather nauseating (and boring) that Ayla and Jondalar's chief conversational topic is their fabulous sexual compatibility. I strongly recommend the first book, but this one is really a waste of time.
Rating: 
Summary: Leaves me wanting yet more
Review: Parts of this book are a bit repetitive and not so gripping as the 1st 3. But still a very good read. I have just finished reading all 4 books in the series for about the 4th time! I thought there was going to be more. The end of the edition I have states that Jean M. Auel is currently researching material for the 5th book. Has it been published yet?
Rating: 
Summary: Where did she get this from?
Review: Like most of the people that have written the previous reviews, I read all of Auel's books. And, where was this going? I found myself forgeting whole sections of the book because it was so BORING! I have to admit that many of the other ones were pretty drawn out as well, but atleast they kept you reading. This is a book I would recommend not to buy. But, honestly, if Auel wrote another one I would probably read it. So, Auel, make them better, will ya!
Rating:
Summary: well reserched and very entertining
Review: Just read it and make your own opinion. Also the previous books of this series.
Rating:
Summary: Disappointing book!
Review: After reading some of the recent entries, its good to know that my disappointments in this book are shared by some other readers. The Plains of Passage seems to immensely lack the quality of the earlier books in the series and the 'adventures' of the main characters, Ayla and Jondalar, reminded me vividly of the reality of the 'moralizing' that so many 'explorers' have done to indigenous peoples. Even with this aside, I felt that the book was poorly written and extremely over-drawn; I often found myself skiping over entire chapters without feeling as though I had missed any of the story or character development (or, more accurately, in both cases the lack thereof).
Rating:
Summary: Wonderful reading, as were the other three.
Review: A very good read. Ayla and Jondular have a long journey and meet many obstacles along the way. The story keeps moving so you're taken with them. You laugh, cry, and explore with them as they get closer to their destination. I've read all four books years ago, and am enjoying them on the second go around. I look forward to any more in the series. Ms. Auel is a great author and I highly recommend this series to all who love a good story.
Rating:
Summary: Read it for the sake of completeness
Review: The first book of the series was brilliant, full of power and imagination -it's quite impossible not to get hooked. Unfortunately all the following volumes decrease in quality and I finished Plains of Passage just for the sake of completeness. If the next book doesn't improve significantly the whole story might some day just be remebered as a fairly cheap "sex-amongst-the-cavemen-saga", which happened to have a good start.
Rating: 
Summary: Just As Good As the Others!!
Review: Thankfully after finishing the Mammoth Hunters, I didn't have to wait a year before finding the fourth installment. I was a seventh grader when I read, and quickly finished The Plains Of Passage. The reason: I couldn't put it down!! Like always, Jean M. Auel has put out a great amount of effort to write an interesting and entirely compelling novel. Ayla and Jondalar are now on their way to Jondalar's home. It's a long journey, filled with many dangers, and people who will either befriend them or hate and fear them because of Ayla's horses Whinney and Racer (though Jondalar rides him mostly)and her wolf simply named, Wolf. My least favorite character was the leader of the S'Armuni tribe (prehistoric Amazon women). I was so glad of how that turned out. I was also glad that the Clan received a part in the story as well. Ayla was a wonderful heroine.
Rating:
Summary: Dismal entry in continuing saga
Review: This book is the 4th in a series written about Ayla, a cro-magnon raised by a neanderthal tribe. While the 1st book, Clan of the Cave Bear, was an enjoyable read (I recommend it), each new installment in the series has become progressively and exponentially more disappointing. I personally found myself extremely disappointed and dismally upset by the very moral missionary type escapades of the main characters of this book, Ayla and Jondalar. The book had a very "You are wrong, we are morally superior, and you should be thankful we arrived at your cave for the sole purpouse of your theological edification" feel to it. The sex drives of the main characters were also much to strong to even approach realism, sadly debasing what could have been an excellent story line/concept for the series to the level of semi-pornographic, trashy, Hustler-type pulp fiction. I highly recommend the 1st book in the series, but don't bother spending your money on the Plains of Passage.
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