Rating: Summary: Extremely entertaining and educational Review: This book was recommended to me by a former student of mine who is into survival skills and primitive living. Respecting his opinion, I picked up the book. Well, I thoroughly enjoyed it. The contrast and conflict introduced by having a young Cro-Magnon woman raised by Neandertals was a an excellent vehicle for the story. The author seems to have done her homework on the ice age as well. Although I don't know about her speculations on the nature of Neandertal society and their brain structure and function, they were fascinating. These people become such an integral part of the story that by the end of the book when you begin to realize that they, as a group, are going to pass away soon, it brings a poignant sadness. Well written, excellent characterization.
Rating: Summary: Amature. Review: I'm a reader. I am not a writer, but if I had the writing skills of Jean Auel, my review of Clan of the Cave Bear might look like this:"I eagerly awaited the rare opportunity to read the famous book by Jean Auel. As I anxiously read the exciting words on the white pages, I was constantly distracted by the desparate use of poorly-chosen adjectives. After reading two large paragraphs, I could easily tell that the large book was poorly written by a hopelessly unskilled amature." Jean Auel had some great ideas for a story, but does not have the skills to tell it. The story might be interesting and well researched, but it is difficult to get past her awful prose which does nothing to paint a picture of a prehistoric time, and her amature use of adjectives is forever distracting from the story she's trying to tell. Please read the sample pages before buying this book. This is not a book for anyone who enjoys good writing.
Rating: Summary: Fiction intwined with fact a great read!!! Review: I really enjoyed the Clan of the Cave Bear because it was descriptive and interesting. The characters and settings are very realistic. This book brought out every emotion in me and I found it almost addictive. I would recommend the Clan of The Cave Bear to anyone with an open mind, who enjoys fictions stories that include factual information. This book is intended for an older audience. It may be hard for younger children to understand because of the way it is written. The Clan of the Cave Bear is at a reading level of grade 7 and up. What I really enjoyed about this book was that Jean M Auel portrayed the Cave people as being intelligent, with a structured culture, instead of the stereotypical image of Cave people portrayed in most stories. Another aspect of the book i really enjoyed is that the Clan of the Cave Bear is filled with information about the prehistoric area. The book describes detailed facts about how weapons are created, how the clan men hunt and how the clan thinks. What I did not enjoy about this book was that sometimes Jean M. Auel described the setting with too much detail. I thought that the imagery she used was sometimes too descriptive and that there could be more imagination and less facts in the setting.
Rating: Summary: A MUST READ!!!!!!!!!!!! Review: The book I read was The Clan Of The Cave Bear. It is about a girl named Ayla whose mother dies in an earthquake. She wanders around until a cave lion attacks her and after that she faints. When a group of Neanderthals pass by they pick her up. She grows up with them and when she nears the age of nine, she begins to hunt with a sling, which is forbidden by the clan. If you become interested you should read the rest of Jean M. Auel's series, the books are in order. The Clan of the Cave Bear The Valley of Horses Mammoth Hunters The Plains of Passage The Shelters of Stone
Rating: Summary: Like a Good Wine! Review: Very few books actually stand the test of time. Fewer still age as well as Jean Auel's "Earth's Children" series. Consider for a moment that this book was originally published in 1980. Twenty-three years in print has got to count for something! Auel has traveled to many of the areas where the series takes place. She has studied flint knapping and wilderness survival. All of Auel's painstaking research and travel adds another layer of dimension to Ayla's complex world. The resulting series is an amazing insight into the evolution of humanity. Sounding like a day in the Reference section of the library? It isn't. You will care about these characters. If a few million millenia seem to be a great distance between you and your Cro-Magnon forbears, fear not. Ever felt lonely? Think you'll never "fit in" with the crowd around you? Ayla's emotions are as real as any we express today. How she deals with these feelings is the basis for an epic story and an amazing ride through pre-history. Strap yourself into this time machine...but don't forget your walking boots and a good spear. You'll need them.
Rating: Summary: A huge accomplishment Review: It's not as vast as the worlds created by Frank Herbert and J.R.R. Tolkien but ambitious enough to continually remind me of their work. I really liked the set up of the story over the first half of the book. A reader can experience a very foreign place and time that feels increasingly familiar as each event creates more insight into prehistoric landscape, society, species, races, thought, religion and language. The description of the mental, physical, spiritual consistency of the Clan race and the Others was fascinating and believable. The use of a five year old girl trying to fit in and bridge the gap between her younger forward thinking race and the more ancient memory ridden Clan of the Cave Bear was a perfect way to show differences and similarities. Through the second half of the book, it settles into a good story but doesn't reveal as much of Auel's amazing depiction of the prehistoric world that I found so captivating in the beginning. The characters started to remind me of people today with the same free thinking, tradition bound differences and similarities that we enjoy and struggle with. I really enjoyed the end of the book and found myself out the next day purchasing the next in the series.
Rating: Summary: A good book Review: This book is absolutely awesome. However, if you aren't interested in The history of man kind, then I sugguest you read another book. While reading the book, I almost felt like I was the main character and it kept the pages turning. This indicates a great book that is worth reading!
Rating: Summary: Simply amazing Review: I loved this book so much! It's so full of details,knowledge, and creates a perfect combine between far hitory facts and a interesting story. Ayla is different, but though, the clan members give her place between them...i loved it, you probably will, too
Rating: Summary: VERY GOOD, I WAS IMPRESSED AND WILL READ MORE Review: I never thought I would read this book based on the title, but I did and really liked it. I just bought the 2nd one and can't wait to start that one. At times there was too much detail and not enough action, but a great story that makes you think, what was it really like?
Rating: Summary: My favorite book of all time! Review: The first time I read this book, I fell in love with the darling little orphan, Ayla. Thrust into a family that was not her own--one whose members disliked and distrusted her--Ayla survived years of mental and physical abuse, sadly assuming that she deserved most of her punishments. As much as she tried to please the clan, to fit in and become one of them, she was and always would be an outsider; something she realized but could not change. Without them, however, she would surely die. Ayla had little choice but to stay with the group for as long as they would let her (which, periodically, became a social issue) and do her best to survive in their world. Her inner strength and courage often brought tears to my eyes; her spunky personality made me grin. Ayla's story was a gripping, intense tale that just wouldn't let me go until I had read every last word of that book. Then, of course, I had no choice but to re-read it; it's just that kind of book. The second reading was an altogether different thing. I was drawn right through a time tunnel...and was there! By Iza's side, I witnessed life with the clan and struggled along with them to survive the hardships of their day. I learned to love Iza--mother, teacher, friend--as much as Ayla (and must commend Jean Auel for allowing Iza to be such a warm, wise, brave, intelligent and knowledgable woman). This was Iza's story as much as it was Ayla's and, for awhile perhaps, mine. We were family. We were Clan. I was there. It's just that kind of book. When the last page was read, I felt a twinge of regret about having to return to my own time and return the book to the shelf. And so I reached for "The Valley of Horses"...and began to read.
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