The Plains of Passage
Earth's Children, Book Four (with Bonus Content)
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4.2 • 263 Ratings
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- $7.99
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- $7.99
Publisher Description
This eBook includes the full text of the novel plus the following additional content:
• An exclusive preview chapter from Jean M. Auel’s The Land of Painted Caves, on sale in hardcover March 29, 2011
• An Earth’s Children® series sampler including free chapters from the other books in Jean M. Auel’s bestselling series
• A Q&A with the author about the Earth’s Children® series
Ayla, the heroine first introduced in The Clan of the Cave Bear, is known and loved by millions of readers. Now, in The Plains of Passage, Ayla’s story continues.
Ayla and Jondalar set out on horseback across the windswept grasslands of Ice Age Europe. To the hunter-gatherers of their world--who have never seen tame animals--Ayla and Jondalar appear enigmatic and frightening. The mystery surrounding the woman, who speaks with a strange accent and talks to animals with their own sounds, is heightened by her uncanny control of a large, powerful wolf. The tall, yellow-haired man who rides by her side is also held in awe, not only for the magnificent stallion he commands, but also for his skill as a crafter of stone tools, and for the new weapon he devises, the spear-thrower.
In the course of their cross-continental odyssey, Ayla and Jondalar encounter both savage enemies and brave friends. Together they learn that the vast and unknown world can be difficult and treacherous, but breathtakingly beautiful and enlightening as well. All the pain and pleasure bring them closer to their ultimate destination, for the orphaned Ayla and the wandering Jondalar must reach that place on earth they can call home.
As sweeping and spectacular as the land she creates, Jean M. Auel’s The Plains of Passage is an astonishing novel of discovery, danger, and love, a triumph for one of the world’s most original and popular authors.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
The long-awaited fourth installment of the Earth's Children series is as warm and inviting as its campfire milieu. sure fire bestseller. Auel again describes her characters' travails, a passionate interest of millions of readers, in impeccably researched detail. The continuous recitation of flora and fauna, coupled with flashbacks to events in the previous books, becomes somewhat tiresome, however. (Would that our ``memory'' were as instinctual as that of the Clan.) The saga continues the cross-continental journey of Ayla, her mate Jondalar and their menagerie to his homeland. En route, they encounter a variety of problems, yet manage to find panaceas for each. Their enlightened compilation of skills, inventions, therapies and recipes transforms the voyagers into spirit-like personas providing The Others with constant awe. A brief encounter with the Neanderthal Clan rekindles the unique charm of the first (and strongest) book. Such locutions as ``out of the cooking skin into the coals'' or ``Mother's path of milk'' for the Milky Way are coyly anachronistic. Nonetheless, this volume is as welcome as letters from a long-lost friend. A novel 1.25 million first printing; major ad/promo; first serial to Ladies' Home Journal; BOMC main selection; author tour.
Customer Reviews
Too much…
This is my second read through, or should I say skip through, Auel’s third novel about Ayla. There is no way to know the accuracy of the descriptions regarding lives at the end of the Ice Age, so this interpretation is as good as any. Where the novel falls short is two fold: sex and scenery. Perhaps a geologist would be fascinated by lengthy descriptions of the lands traveled across, but they become repetitive. The explicit descriptions of intercourse serve no narrative purpose, becoming repetitive as well. This read through, perhaps because I’m older now, the main characters appear immature, self centered, and irritating.l
Never ending story
The first three books of the series were exciting and easy to read. This one, on the other hand, felt like a never ending story filled with an obscene amount of detail in the descriptions of the flora and fauna of the settings. It took everything I had to pick up this book and complete it so I could be able to move on to the next one in the series.
Good story, typos throughout
Echoing the other reviewer, I think there are a couple pages missing between page 835-836. Either that, or I am missing something. It jumps from a matrimonial promise ceremony to the middle of a conversation about people riding mammoths. Kind of a big part of the story...