Honestly, The Boy: The Mastodons-Book 1 is everything you would expect from James Strauss. I had been interested in reading this book for a while, but the last time I paid over $70 for a book was in college and it was never worth it. I'm too frugal to do it for pleasure.
If you, like I did, wonder if this is going to be a similar read as The Clan of Cave Bear series is, let me clue you in. They are similar in that they are both realistic historical fiction and they both offer a potential glimpse into the life of an individual who dares to step outside the bounds of approved societal behavior for the time the story is set in. However, the similarities end there.
You won't find so much in the way of healing herbs as you will in human behavior and the difference one person straying from the path can make. This book is about the entrapment of how the codes of a society that originally meant to protect a community, can ultimately be the downfall of one.
When loneliness and fear are your only companions, and internal ones at that, you will seek outside solace as The Boy does. Separated from his tribe by disaster, The Boy makes an unusual friend and is soon lost in isolation that leads to discovery. The book delves into the human mind and includes not so pleasant thoughts of the main character, so that you get a glimpse of real human nature, how it can be flawed, and how it can be changed.
While The Boy: The Mastadons-Book 1 is rich in detail and description, it is also the gateway to understanding the destruction of conformity and the assumptions that are made because of it. If you enjoy (pre)historical fiction, you will enjoy this tale for the sake of the tale. If you enjoy reflecting on the fallacies of societal behavior, you are going to wonder why this book is not required reading for any parent, teacher, or leader of any kind.
