Clan of the Cave Bear

[Gigei]

How are they any less unsanitary than people in medieval times? I don't believe toothbrushes or deodorant were used then either, and soap only rarely.

At least cavemen didn't throw their slops out into the street....

Medieval people had perfumes, which is an early form of deodorant (masking body smells with flower scents). Toothbrushes are very, very old.

The first toothbrush recorded in history was made in 3000 B.C., a twig with a frayed end called a chewstick.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toothbrush

[Liadin]

Medieval people had perfumes, which is an early form of deodorant (masking body smells with flower scents). Toothbrushes are very, very old.

According to the wiki, toothbrushes have been used since prehistoric times, so maybe Ayla did have one.

I can't imagine very many people in medieval times could afford perfumes.

[Alexia]

1. Ayla and Jondalar used a toothbrush every morning, although Ayla didn't invent it.

2. I don't want to come within 20 feet of someone who replaces regular bathing with perfume.

[Mad Monkey]

I vote first Mr. Sensitive. Remember he was the favorite deflowerer in the books, also. *snickers*

There was one montage where it was him and some other Guy With A Ridiculous Name wandering around having sex with a string of women. I kept thinking that there had to be some sort of plot-related thing to this, that maybe some of these women would turn out to be important to the story later on, and that the book wasn't actually shifting into soft-core pornography every other chapter for no reason. I was wrong.

[Isis]

I think, in all honesty, I read some Danielle Steele book of my Mom's when I was about 12 where the main character was shipped off to some kind of halfway house where she was repeatedly raped with a bottle by her butch lesbian roommate.

Yep. Thanks Danielle Steele.

Yeah, I read that one too.

Someone bought me CotCB for Christmas years ago and I just left it sitting on the shelf until it eventually got thrown out unread. You're making me think I should have given it a try after all.

[Pebble thats Stubby]

Ayla did indeed invent soap. :lol:

IIRC Soap was one of the few inventions that neither Ayla or Jondalar didn't invent.

Iza taught her about soaproot and Ayla learnt about making soap from the cave that mined coal.

She is however the only person to work out how babies are made and is responsible for the Popes cursade on contraception. If only she had followed Iza's rule and not let any men know......

[shadow catlady]

2. I don't want to come within 20 feet of someone who replaces regular bathing with perfume.

I actually was comforted by how often they bathed in these books, especially on those mornings Ayla had to break the surface ice to get to the water.

I'm in the category that enjoys the guilty pleasure of this series, though I only ever feel like re-reading the first one. At some point in the novels I had to skim/ skip the repetitive flora/ fauna descriptions, as well as, yes, the repetitive sex scenes. The worst was the time they got all horny from watching a rhinoceros with a big, um, manhood.

[Max the Mostly Mediocre]

If you ask me, I think WoT would have been much better if Jordan had mixed in some of Auel's titillating sex scenes.

Suddenly I'm tempted to acquire ebooks of CotC and Shadow Rising and do some remixing.

But no. I shall resist.

[murphy]

I actually was comforted by how often they bathed in these books, especially on those mornings Ayla had to break the surface ice to get to the water.

I'm in the category that enjoys the guilty pleasure of this series, though I only ever feel like re-reading the first one. At some point in the novels I had to skim/ skip the repetitive flora/ fauna descriptions, as well as, yes, the repetitive sex scenes. The worst was the time they got all horny from watching a rhinoceros with a big, um, manhood.

It wasn't a rhinoceros, it was a mastodon (giant, hairy elephant).

[russjass]

It wasn't a rhinoceros, it was a mastodon (giant, hairy elephant).

Mammoth. A mastadon is a dinosaur. And there was a long explanation of how in most species the female goes into heat, but with mammoths the males do too, although more rarely, and it is called Musth.

And I remember being vaguely horrified by how turned on Ayla was by the Mammoths huge dripping dick

[Maltaran]

Mammoth. A mastadon is a dinosaur.

Actually, no, both mastodons and mammoths are giant hairy elephantine creatures.

[russjass]

Actually, no, both mastodons and mammoths are giant hairy elephantine creatures.

Yes this is true. But they are un-related and the creature described in the book was the Mammoth

[murphy]

Mammoth. A mastadon is a dinosaur. And there was a long explanation of how in most species the female goes into heat, but with mammoths the males do too, although more rarely, and it is called Musth.

And I remember being vaguely horrified by how turned on Ayla was by the Mammoths huge dripping dick

Not according to my dictionary. (And yes, I did look it up in a paper dictionary to check my spelling). :P

Actually, no, both mastodons and mammoths are giant hairy elephantine creatures.

Thank you.

[Pebble thats Stubby]

Mammoth. A mastadon is a dinosaur. And there was a long explanation of how in most species the female goes into heat, but with mammoths the males do too, although more rarely, and it is called Musth.

And I remember being vaguely horrified by how turned on Ayla was by the Mammoths huge dripping dick

Just think about how excited she would have got if they where olliphants! *shudders* I remember the effect just one had on Sam

[YellowDogJen]

I liked Clan of the Cave Bear, and read the next two...but it (the constant doing it!) just got embarrassing/boring by the third book. I gave the books away.

Too bad. It was a great premise, and I learned a few things about neanderthals and ancient art.

[Willie McBride]

They're great if you are 13 and have never read graphic sex.

So it seems that, for quite a few of us, Jondalar took our literary graphic sex virginities...? What an a$$hole man-whore. Or was he the first Mr. Sensitive?

I can't remember if I stumbled on those books before or after reading Ken Follett.

Hm

No one else raided their mother's Harold Robbins and Judith Krantz books in their early teens?

Actually, I think Judy Blume and Forever might have taken my literary virginity some twenty five + years ago.

Then I moved on to the hard stuff.

I don't know what possessed my mother the day she told me "there are a few books in the highest shelf I don't think you're old enough to read" when she saw me looking for new books.

Before the end of the summer I had read all of them.

Speaking of "graphic" novels, in the sense of steamy sex scenes, I feel an honorable mention ought to be made of Ken Follett. I only read two of his offerings, but both (coincidence?) had extremely graphic oral sex scenes. "Lie down with Lions" stands out. It was an interesting tale of Afghanistan (and a love story interwoven in.)

Got a lot of mileage out of that one. :D

No coincidence at all :D I remember "Lie down with Lions", there was a very graphic scene in that book that went on for 20 pages or so. :)

I actually was comforted by how often they bathed in these books, especially on those mornings Ayla had to break the surface ice to get to the water.

I'm in the category that enjoys the guilty pleasure of this series, though I only ever feel like re-reading the first one. At some point in the novels I had to skim/ skip the repetitive flora/ fauna descriptions, as well as, yes, the repetitive sex scenes. The worst was the time they got all horny from watching a rhinoceros with a big, um, manhood.

It was a mastodon.

Ok. It's been almost 15 years since I last read those book, apparently they impressed on my younger self's mind more than I suspected.

[kuenjato]

Suddenly I'm tempted to acquire ebooks of CotC and Shadow Rising and do some remixing.

But no. I shall resist.

No, this is a brilliant idea. Except it should be Valley of the Horses, which has more sex and a prehistoric bj. Redefine slashfic, Max! Do it!

[Galactus]

I read some fairly graphic Sydney Sheldon book about...er...doctors? when I was about 10, and i'm pretty sure I wasn't particulalry startled. (Though a phrase that went something like "Her female softness and his male hardness" has unfortunately stayed with me to this day.) I blame not having a lot of age appropriate reading material in languages I could understand.

I seem to remember my first (fairly graphic) sex-scene was Mists of Avalon.

[Datepalm]

I seem to remember my first (fairly graphic) sex-scene was Mists of Avalon.

My cousin shipped me Mists of Avalon (and some Anne Rice) all the way from the US, with the rec that "theres a threesome!" when I was like 12. :blushing: My parents lassiez faire style comes through once more!

[Galactus]

My cousin shipped me Mists of Avalon (and some Anne Rice) all the way from the US, with the rec that "theres a threesome!" when I was like 12. :blushing: My parents lassiez faire style comes through once more!

I got it from the library. my mother seemed more disturbed by the fact that there was wine-drinking.