Week 13 - Review

I have always been a fan of book series.  Different styles, different genre - I just love a good story, and it's a great pleasure to finish a good book and know that there is another portion of the characters lives that I get to live along with them.  It's almost like calling up an old friend every month or so and catching up on things.  One of the first series that I became addicted to was the "Clan of the Cave Bear" series by Jean Auel.  In this series we follow our heroine Ayla from early childhood to eventual motherhood in the shadow of the last Ice Age.  When I had last re-read my final book in the series, I noticed in the author notes that she was working on another book for the series, I frantically went online searching for publication dates, in hopes that it was out and available at my nearest bookstore.  Sadly, that was not the case, I had to wait another six whole months for the next installment to arrive.  As the release date came closer, I pulled out all of the other books and dutifully read them all through in preparation, it would not do to read the new book without having the previous stories fresh in my mind.  Finally the day arrived and I plunked down my hard earned money on the counter, not even minding the extra I paid for hardcover when I usually went for the more comfortably priced paperback.  I waited for a quiet evening to crack open the cover and begin my new journey into "The Land of Painted Caves."

New mother Ayla was continuing her training of the Zelandonia and happily married to her love Jondalar, all was well.  The story drifted along, pausing here and there to remind readers, or to instruct those who had not read earlier books, of the history of the characters and land.  I noticed as I went along though, that there was a lot of that backtracking, a whole lot.  I understand the concept of not wanting to exclude readers that didn't have the history, but it became obvious that serious portions of this "new" book weren't new, but a recap of earlier ones. I plowed onward, optomistic that Ms. Auel would catch the new readers up to speed and the second half of the book would surge forward in time.

Ayla went to the grand summer meeting of people.  Her new introduction to everyone was over and this year she was able to look forward to familiar faces and catching up on news.  She was able to introduce her new daughter and juggled her duties as mother and wife with her new increasing demands of the Zelandonia, the spiritual leaders and healers of the people.  As the title foretells, as part of her training she is taken on a tour of the lands to see all of the sacred caves and their paintings.  There are lots of descriptons of stalagmites and stalagtites, dark echoing caverns, and cryptic lines and markings with the caves they visit.  All the while, Ayla is absorbing these with wonder and widom.  An chance meeting with a group of "outlaw" men from a nearby cave introduces the idea of retribution and justice in this early civilization, but Ayla and Jondalar return safely to their home in the Ninth cave as the summer closes.

Apparently winter in early civilizations is as boring as winter in modern times, because we skip forward to spring and Ayla's continued training.  Sadly the story detours to Ayla's history, as read in books one and two, and I get another chapters closer to the end of the book.  I must admit at this time I was waiting on the edge of my seat for some spark of new life to bring some conflict and excitement to the story.  While there was a captivating chapter or two when Ayla recieves her "calling" to the spiritual world, and the sacrifice she makes for that calling, the conflict never comes.  Unfortunately, although the author notes do not mention it, this seven hundred fifty seven pages is merely Ms. Auel's re-entry to authoring, and is apparently the groundwork for another book to follow.  I would recommend that avid Cave Bear fans reread the older books and wait for Painted Caves to come out in paperback to spare the $30 hardcover price, and wait for a couple of years for (hopefully) another book to come out that has that same spark and interest that the older ones had, yet this one sorely lacks.