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greenchiledragonfly 's review for:
The Plains of Passage
by Jean M. Auel
I first read the Earth's Children series in 2001. I read this particular book on a long Greyhound bus ride from Albuquerque to St. Paul. The book seemed endless then, and it seemed endless again in this 2011 reading. Having read it twice before, I looked forward to the different remembered stops in Ayla and Jondalar's journey.
Somehow, I had remembered the Valley of Horses to be full of tawdry caveman sex, and Plains of Passage to be relatively benign, but in fact, the opposite is true. I did, however, remember accurately the vivid mating scene between the wooly mammoths.
Two weeks ago, I visited the new Hall of Human Origins at the Smithsonian- this was somewhat like a guided tour through the Earth's Children series. The Plains of Passage mentions several important sites and it enhanced my reading of the book to have recently seen artifacts and explanations of the specific sites.
I appreciate Auel's extensive research, but often the detailed descriptions of flora and fauna seem endless. I enjoyed hearing about the different prehistoric animals, but I got it the first time that horses are usually Whinney's color and that Racer is unusual in being dark. Or that woolly rhinos are temperamental. The same information is repeated over and again and it gets a bit tedious.
In all, I'm glad I've been rereading the series in preparation for the final book, but I think I could have easily skipped this book and been fine.
Somehow, I had remembered the Valley of Horses to be full of tawdry caveman sex, and Plains of Passage to be relatively benign, but in fact, the opposite is true. I did, however, remember accurately the vivid mating scene between the wooly mammoths.
Two weeks ago, I visited the new Hall of Human Origins at the Smithsonian- this was somewhat like a guided tour through the Earth's Children series. The Plains of Passage mentions several important sites and it enhanced my reading of the book to have recently seen artifacts and explanations of the specific sites.
I appreciate Auel's extensive research, but often the detailed descriptions of flora and fauna seem endless. I enjoyed hearing about the different prehistoric animals, but I got it the first time that horses are usually Whinney's color and that Racer is unusual in being dark. Or that woolly rhinos are temperamental. The same information is repeated over and again and it gets a bit tedious.
In all, I'm glad I've been rereading the series in preparation for the final book, but I think I could have easily skipped this book and been fine.