“It’s a child, Brun. Hurt but not dead,” she replied.
Brun looked at the thin young girl with the high forehead, small nose, and strangely flat face. “Not Clan,” the leader gestured abruptly and turned to walk away.
“Brun, she’s a child. She’s hurt. She’ll die if we leave her here.” Iza’s eyes pleaded as she made the hand signals.
“The Clan of the Cave Bear” by Jean M. Auel takes place during the Earth’s last ice age, when two species of humans existed together on the European continent – the Cro-Magnons and the more primitive Neanderthals. The story surrounds the Cro-Magnon child, Ayla, who becomes separated from her family in an earthquake. She is found by a tribe of Neanderthals who, out of basic human compassion but with much reluctance, take her in and integrate her into their group. The book recounts Ayla’s struggle to try to belong to a people dramatically different from her. She strives to learn the language and lifestyle of the clan and even becomes respected by most of the members for her intelligence and skills, but is later threatened by the leader of the clan just for being different.
“The Clan of the Cave Bear” is the first in the Earth’s Children series comprising of five books, which span several years in Ayla’s young life. The author has beautifully written a saga of prehistory and has given names and personalities to people who, to we living in the present era, may only be bones in the strata.
Jennifer, Books on Broadway
*This book is available at Books on Broadway*
