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bundy23's review against another edition
3.0
It was okay and certainly interesting enough early but it just went on for way too long and I was so bored by the end that I actually had to go back and re-read what happened to Lok because I must've completely zoned out. I guess when you don't care enough to pay attention to the fate of the hero then it's probably not a good sign...
apawney97's review against another edition
2.0
This book turned out to be very underwhelming. It took me a long time to finish it and it left me really underwhelmed. Whilst I understand Golding's motive behind the writing of this novel - an attempt to emulate the mind and manners of Neanderthal men, the language turns out to be very convoluted in its simplicity. The use of communal metaphors such as the 'log', the 'picture' and the 'Oa', although alluded to MANY times remain vague until the end and the main character makes it even harder to get into the story, since he is evidently the least intellectual of the Neanderthal race (!!!).
I get the whole almost colonial aspect of the looming sense of invasion as the Homo Sapiens get closer and start to take lives from the Neanderthal tribe, but their rendering remains very questionable since it is treated through such an unreliable character. The penultimate chapter is this sort of omniscient perspective which shows you the struggles of the last Neanderthal man (had to Google this to actually understand!) - a chapter which almost reads like an animal fable (or insect fable?) of sorts (excessively symbolic and complex in this context) - whilst the final chapter shifts to the perspective of the Homo Sapiens. What irritated me the most was the fact that when the torch of language is moved from the Neanderthal to the Homo Sapiens, the novel's language suddenly flourishes and becomes, on the other extreme, a bit too refined - a bit too sure of itself. It is dubious that a species of man which existed simultaneously with another could have had such superior control over the language. I do get that they are not actually speaking - that it is mostly a 'translation' of their movements, consciousness and attempts at language, but to me it is still not credible if one is to take it as a paleoanthropological fictional venture. The characters are not memorable and their struggles do not really generate the pathos which they are intended to.
Whilst the original intention is, without a doubt, brilliant and visionary, the delivery left a lot to be desired. Maybe because it's too ambitious or it takes itself too seriously?
I get the whole almost colonial aspect of the looming sense of invasion as the Homo Sapiens get closer and start to take lives from the Neanderthal tribe, but their rendering remains very questionable since it is treated through such an unreliable character. The penultimate chapter is this sort of omniscient perspective which shows you the struggles of the last Neanderthal man (had to Google this to actually understand!) - a chapter which almost reads like an animal fable (or insect fable?) of sorts (excessively symbolic and complex in this context) - whilst the final chapter shifts to the perspective of the Homo Sapiens. What irritated me the most was the fact that when the torch of language is moved from the Neanderthal to the Homo Sapiens, the novel's language suddenly flourishes and becomes, on the other extreme, a bit too refined - a bit too sure of itself. It is dubious that a species of man which existed simultaneously with another could have had such superior control over the language. I do get that they are not actually speaking - that it is mostly a 'translation' of their movements, consciousness and attempts at language, but to me it is still not credible if one is to take it as a paleoanthropological fictional venture. The characters are not memorable and their struggles do not really generate the pathos which they are intended to.
Whilst the original intention is, without a doubt, brilliant and visionary, the delivery left a lot to be desired. Maybe because it's too ambitious or it takes itself too seriously?
greatlibraryofalexandra's review against another edition
2.0
I loved the concept of this, and I really wanted to love the book. In the end I sort of skimmed it / half read it. It was short, and the gist of it was repetitive. It just seemed to lack sophistication. I read Clan of the Cave Bear years ago, and I expected something like that; instead, the way Golding wrote it (attempting to convey the simplicity of the Neanderthals and their difference from the 'Other') just sort of made it hard to follow. Where Jane Auel did an incredible job of providing a nuanced view of neanderthal man while also sharply contrasting them from homo sapiens, this just seems to fall short. Note that I'm only using COTCB as a close comparison because it's the novel that send me in search of more things like it. I enjoyed the vague overarching concepts employed here, but I thought the execution lacked finesse.
gdollinger's review against another edition
4.0
It seems Neanderthals are being rehabilitated. Today this book was mentioned on WYNC program “On the Media” by Rebecca Wragg Sykes, author of Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death and Art.
Sykes quoted Golding on the Neanderthal’s impression of Homo Sapiens: “They are like a fire in the forest.”
Sykes quoted Golding on the Neanderthal’s impression of Homo Sapiens: “They are like a fire in the forest.”
johnclough's review against another edition
1.0
A promising experiment ruined by boring overall delivery coupled with a few passages of the worst, most unclear writing I've come across in fiction for quite a while - including at the few critical plot points.
borealis85's review against another edition
3.0
A little strange, but beautiful and emotional. Very interesting setting with neanderthals vs. modern human.
dagdraumar's review against another edition
4.0
Denne likte jeg godt! Jeg slet litt med å holde følge av og til - fortellerstilen var til tider litt forvirrende, men det kan godt skyldes ammetåka/hjernen etter fødsel. Det hjalp litt å lese om den samtidig som jeg leste den, i tillegg gikk det jo nesten to uker fra jeg begynte på den til jeg fortsatte pga total omveltning av livet. En unik og godt skrevet historie om de siste neandertalerne og deres møte med det moderne mennesket. Fremmedfrykt, nysgjerrighet, ulikhet/likhet og mangel på forståelse av den andre. Ganske hjerteskjærende slutt.