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2.92 AVERAGE
2.92 AVERAGE
Sadly, the probable end to this long series is crap. Auel needs an editor, badly. The book is broken into 3 discrete sections which have time gaps between them, which I believe was not really done in previous books. As years pass, you would think that the major characters would grow in emotional maturity, but no, they don't.
My guess is, if you're already in the series for the first 5 books you'll read the sixth anyway, but I feel completely cheated by this one.
My guess is, if you're already in the series for the first 5 books you'll read the sixth anyway, but I feel completely cheated by this one.
In this final book, Ayla trains to become a Zelandoni and has to deal with the difficulties of being a “career woman.”
As I had predicted in the last book, there is a strong undercurrent of “Ayla invents patriarchy.” Not to give away spoilers, but she manages to convince everyone that babies are indeed conceived from sex. This very quickly leads to the men in the group feeling possessive over “their” babies, and talking about wanting to keep their mates monogamous.
There was a lot of repeated material – Ayla takes some bad herbs and goes into a sort of coma so Wolf has to go find Jondalar and bring him back so that the power of his love can revive her. And, of course, Ayla and Jondalar have a misunderstanding (sort of, Jondalar was also being a rather big jerk) and decide to just avoid each other and attempt suicide rather than actually talking. How they’ve managed to be in a relationship for as long as they have given their chronic reluctance to ever talk about their problems is an utter mystery to me. They haven’t grown at all as characters since Mammoth Hunters.
It was frustrating and, as with many of the later books in the series, painfully plodding. The whole narrative could have easily been condensed into a book a quarter of the size. Information was repeated, over and over again – not just information from earlier in the series, but often just from earlier in the book! The Mother’s Song, in particular, must have been repeated at least a dozen times, if not more.
As I had predicted in the last book, there is a strong undercurrent of “Ayla invents patriarchy.” Not to give away spoilers, but she manages to convince everyone that babies are indeed conceived from sex. This very quickly leads to the men in the group feeling possessive over “their” babies, and talking about wanting to keep their mates monogamous.
There was a lot of repeated material – Ayla takes some bad herbs and goes into a sort of coma so Wolf has to go find Jondalar and bring him back so that the power of his love can revive her. And, of course, Ayla and Jondalar have a misunderstanding (sort of, Jondalar was also being a rather big jerk) and decide to just avoid each other and attempt suicide rather than actually talking. How they’ve managed to be in a relationship for as long as they have given their chronic reluctance to ever talk about their problems is an utter mystery to me. They haven’t grown at all as characters since Mammoth Hunters.
It was frustrating and, as with many of the later books in the series, painfully plodding. The whole narrative could have easily been condensed into a book a quarter of the size. Information was repeated, over and over again – not just information from earlier in the series, but often just from earlier in the book! The Mother’s Song, in particular, must have been repeated at least a dozen times, if not more.
Wow, this book was hugely disappointing. Things didn't wrap up, and she spent so much time describing caves rather than exploring character conflicts. And she relied on problems from her previous books, Ayla sleeps with someone or does something other than wait hand and foot on Jondalar and he gets annoyed. Seriously, just stop at shelters of stone, you'll be happier that way
The assumption is that anyone even remotely interested in this novel has read at least one or two of the Earth's Children series, if not all five previous novels. If you have not read them, please be warned that spoilers may abound.
The Land of Painted Caves remains true to Ms. Auel's vision, following Ayla on her path from outsider to one of the leaders of the Zelandonii. In true Ayla fashion, she blazes her own path, fostering the advent of monogamy, parental rights, and even art appreciation. For those who have read the first five novels, the ending is anything but a surprise. Ms. Auel has been leading fans along this path for decades, to the point where there is only one conclusion that would be remotely acceptable. Unfortunately, with this all-but-foregone conclusion already known, there is very little in the way of tension and strife to drive the plot. The story itself, while fun and a blast from the past, remains flat and tedious. It has none of the excitement of the first five novels, when Ayla's fate was less than certain.
Also missing is Jondalar. While he is still an important character as Ayla's other half, he fades to the background in this novel, and the story suffers. His struggles and concerns were always a fascinating balance to Ayla's, but this novel has very little of that. Instead, what little conflict that exists feels more like a rehash of The Mammoth Hunters than anything new.
Speaking of which, there is a definite feel of a series finale to this novel. Ayla spends a lot of time reminiscing about almost everything that happens in The Clan of the Cave Bear and The Valley of Horses. In fact, Ms. Auel brings back several characters seen in The Mammoth Hunters as well as in The Plains of Passage. It is very much the parading of old characters to celebrate the end of the series, and while the novel does not suffer, it is a bit unusual to have this particular plot device in novels. Fans will remember most of what is recalled in this latest novel and will enjoy the trip down memory lane, but those that are attempting to pick up the series with the last novel may find it a bit more difficult to get through these passages.
One of the pleasures of reading any of Ms. Auel's novels is her meticulous research. Each novel is specific in its details, to the point where the artifacts/landscape/behaviors being described are crystal clear. The Land of Painted Caves follows this tradition with tremendous attention to detail regarding various cave paintings throughout the region that Ayla visits as part of her Donier tour. The detail is so great that a quick Internet search after finishing the novel was able to uncover the exact caves and landmarks described in the novel, so that the reader, if one so chooses, can easily discern where in France the action is taking place. Unfortunately, while adding an air of reality and credence to the novel, the descriptions also tend to bog down the story and add at least 300 mostly unnecessary pages to this behemoth.
I am an unabashed Ayla fan and have been since I read the first novel of the series in high school. I squealed with delight when I opened the box containing The Land of Painted Caves and eagerly anticipated all 768 pages of it. While it is not my favorite in the series, it was great to be able to visit again with Ayla and Jondalar and experience what life may have been like for the Cro-Magnons tens of thousands of years ago. A true fan can overlook the bad - the repetition and tedious descriptions, the lack of tension - for the good - it's Ayla and Jondalar. The ending is satisfactory, albeit expected, but I am supremely glad that I was able to experience this ground-breaking series. Ms. Auel's descriptions are so realistic, I will forever picture Ayla and her family when reading about prehistoric man. In Ayla, Ms. Auel makes our ancient ancestors come alive, and readers everywhere are better for having been introduced to this amazing woman.
The Land of Painted Caves remains true to Ms. Auel's vision, following Ayla on her path from outsider to one of the leaders of the Zelandonii. In true Ayla fashion, she blazes her own path, fostering the advent of monogamy, parental rights, and even art appreciation. For those who have read the first five novels, the ending is anything but a surprise. Ms. Auel has been leading fans along this path for decades, to the point where there is only one conclusion that would be remotely acceptable. Unfortunately, with this all-but-foregone conclusion already known, there is very little in the way of tension and strife to drive the plot. The story itself, while fun and a blast from the past, remains flat and tedious. It has none of the excitement of the first five novels, when Ayla's fate was less than certain.
Also missing is Jondalar. While he is still an important character as Ayla's other half, he fades to the background in this novel, and the story suffers. His struggles and concerns were always a fascinating balance to Ayla's, but this novel has very little of that. Instead, what little conflict that exists feels more like a rehash of The Mammoth Hunters than anything new.
Speaking of which, there is a definite feel of a series finale to this novel. Ayla spends a lot of time reminiscing about almost everything that happens in The Clan of the Cave Bear and The Valley of Horses. In fact, Ms. Auel brings back several characters seen in The Mammoth Hunters as well as in The Plains of Passage. It is very much the parading of old characters to celebrate the end of the series, and while the novel does not suffer, it is a bit unusual to have this particular plot device in novels. Fans will remember most of what is recalled in this latest novel and will enjoy the trip down memory lane, but those that are attempting to pick up the series with the last novel may find it a bit more difficult to get through these passages.
One of the pleasures of reading any of Ms. Auel's novels is her meticulous research. Each novel is specific in its details, to the point where the artifacts/landscape/behaviors being described are crystal clear. The Land of Painted Caves follows this tradition with tremendous attention to detail regarding various cave paintings throughout the region that Ayla visits as part of her Donier tour. The detail is so great that a quick Internet search after finishing the novel was able to uncover the exact caves and landmarks described in the novel, so that the reader, if one so chooses, can easily discern where in France the action is taking place. Unfortunately, while adding an air of reality and credence to the novel, the descriptions also tend to bog down the story and add at least 300 mostly unnecessary pages to this behemoth.
I am an unabashed Ayla fan and have been since I read the first novel of the series in high school. I squealed with delight when I opened the box containing The Land of Painted Caves and eagerly anticipated all 768 pages of it. While it is not my favorite in the series, it was great to be able to visit again with Ayla and Jondalar and experience what life may have been like for the Cro-Magnons tens of thousands of years ago. A true fan can overlook the bad - the repetition and tedious descriptions, the lack of tension - for the good - it's Ayla and Jondalar. The ending is satisfactory, albeit expected, but I am supremely glad that I was able to experience this ground-breaking series. Ms. Auel's descriptions are so realistic, I will forever picture Ayla and her family when reading about prehistoric man. In Ayla, Ms. Auel makes our ancient ancestors come alive, and readers everywhere are better for having been introduced to this amazing woman.
This book was a disappoint. I feel as though Auel drafted out the first one hundred pages or so and then the last one hundred pages only and then editors informed her of some sort of required word count. There are about 300 pages that could have easily been removed; it felt akin to the first book where every needle of every pine tree is described. The Song of the Mother does not need to be repeated, in its entirety, in every chapter. A long-winded recap of a character does not need to occur more than once in a single book. All action and anticipation created was cut short, almost as if rushed to meet a deadline. Think of this as the Season 8 of Game of Thrones - a let down and a disservice to fans.
Stopping this on 2nd July 2020.
I am HURT. Why? WHY?! There were so many INTERESTING threads that could have added tension for the entire book but especially the last third without adding THAT. Oh my god. I am distraught and heartbroken and why GOD WHY????? WHY DO THE READING GODS HURT ME THIS WAY??? WHY CAN'T THEY HAVE GOOD FINALES TO GOOD SERIES???
I just won't finish any series. That's what I'll do...I won't...finish...anything...
For fuck's sake, I could write a better ending than that. How can Auel write such an amazing and complex and interesting series (esp. the first 3 books) and then BUTCHER this last one. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.
I will re-read the first three books. I may try to read the ending of this book later on down the track, but I am too hurt at the moment.
Ayla could have nearly died in childbirth to make tension with her and Jondalar. Why didn't they explore more communication between the clan and the others? Why didn't they talk about their problems like humans? They don't even have to resolve it. Jondalar could still feel upset that she works too much and Ayla still doesn't want to give it up and Jondalar could still be an asshole because we are human and says that Ayla is his baby and then Ayla screams at him that she IS HIS TOO and Ayla leaves Jondalar to babysit Jonayla still and then Jondalar realises how similar Jonayla is to him and then also other kids and their dads and make the connection and he realises that she is so talented that he can't let her waste away and decides to be happy that she has a fulfilling job.
MAN I feel like writing fan fiction about this now.
I am HURT. Why? WHY?! There were so many INTERESTING threads that could have added tension for the entire book but especially the last third without adding THAT. Oh my god. I am distraught and heartbroken and why GOD WHY????? WHY DO THE READING GODS HURT ME THIS WAY??? WHY CAN'T THEY HAVE GOOD FINALES TO GOOD SERIES???
I just won't finish any series. That's what I'll do...I won't...finish...anything...
For fuck's sake, I could write a better ending than that. How can Auel write such an amazing and complex and interesting series (esp. the first 3 books) and then BUTCHER this last one. Ugh. Ugh. Ugh.
I will re-read the first three books. I may try to read the ending of this book later on down the track, but I am too hurt at the moment.
Ayla could have nearly died in childbirth to make tension with her and Jondalar. Why didn't they explore more communication between the clan and the others? Why didn't they talk about their problems like humans? They don't even have to resolve it. Jondalar could still feel upset that she works too much and Ayla still doesn't want to give it up and Jondalar could still be an asshole because we are human and says that Ayla is his baby and then Ayla screams at him that she IS HIS TOO and Ayla leaves Jondalar to babysit Jonayla still and then Jondalar realises how similar Jonayla is to him and then also other kids and their dads and make the connection and he realises that she is so talented that he can't let her waste away and decides to be happy that she has a fulfilling job.
MAN I feel like writing fan fiction about this now.
http://greenmushroom1up.blogspot.com/2012/03/land-of-painted-caves.html
The most entertaining part of this book is how startlingly boring it is. It never seems to end, just repeats variations of the same three or so scenes over and over.
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is the last book of the series as the author announced that she will no longer be working on any further books in this set. I can't say that I disagree with her - the content has become a bit stale with a group of cardboard villains from the previous books, and repetitive story snippets to provide background. Nothing to see here. 3/5 on Goodreads.