Earth's Children series - The Valley of the Horses

Title : The Valley of Horses (Earth's Children)
Author: Jean M Auel

Okay, since there has not been any review, I thought I'd write about the book that I'm rereading again... At least, let's get the blog moving again people!

Anyway, the book is the second series in Jean M Auel's Earth's Children series. A continuance from the Clan of the Cave Bear, the Valley of the Horses is an intesting story of the infancy of civilization. It's more of an adult epic, rather than the romantic novels that I love reading. This has a historical sense of the civilization during the Ice Age period.

This unforgettable odyssey into the distant past carries us back to the awesome mysteries of the exotic, primeval world of The Clan of the Cave Bear, and to Ayla (the main character of the story), now grown into a beautiful and courageous young woman.

Cruelly cast out by the new leader of the ancient Clan that adopted her as a child, Ayla leaves those she loves behind and travels alone through a stark, open land filled with dangerous animals but few people, searching for the Others, tall and fair like herself. Im not much of an anthropologists, but the description of Ayla kinda reminds me of viking people... tall and fair. May be waaaayyy off base but just a thought.

Anyway, in the story she travels to find the others and stumbles across a sheltered valley with a herd of hardy steppe horses, where she decides to stay and prepare for the long glacial winter ahead.

Living with the Clan has taught Ayla many skills but not real hunting. It's interesting to read the in-depth description given by the author of the way of living from olden times. How they manage to do somthing we take for granted now with technology and how simple needs were then. It's also interesting to note the importance of women that was given by the people, yet not so acknowledge by the flatheads (not nice, but that's the name mentioned in the book. I think they are referring to the neanderthals).

Ayla finally knows she can survive when she traps a horse, which gives her meat and a warm pelt for the winter, but fate has bestowed a greater gift, an orphaned foal with whom she develops a unique kinship.

One winter extends to more; she discovers a way to make fire more quickly and a wounded cave lion cub joins her unusual family, but her beloved animals don’t fulfill her restless need for human companionship. Then she hears the sound of a man screaming in pain. She saves tall, handsome Jondalar, who brings her a language to speak and an awakening of love and desire, but Ayla is torn between her fear of leaving her valley and her hope of living with her own kind.

The author manages to handle these two seperate story strands with ease and switching between them never is never awkward. Eventually the stories intertwine and become one as Ayla finally comes face to face with one of her own kind.

As rich in detail as the first book in the series this book is an absorbing read and one that is difficult to put down. I highly recommended this to those who wants to read the richness of life and sexuality, appreciation of civilization and companionship of human and its humanity.