Suth's Story

The Kin #1

by Peter Dickinson

It is two hundred thousand years ago.
Suth and five other orphans are cut off from their Kin,
the Moonhawks, and lost in the desert.
When they are captured by the mysterious people of the Monkey Kin,
it is up to Suth to find the courage to lead his friends to freedom.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Fiction, Fantasy, Prehistoric, Childrens

211 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1998

About the author

Peter Malcolm de Brissac Dickinson OBE FRSL was a prolific English author and poet, best known for children's books and detective stories.

Peter Dickinson lived in Hampshire with his second wife, author Robin McKinley. He wrote more than fifty novels for adults and young readers. He won both the Carnegie Medal and the Whitbread Children's Award twice, and his novel The Blue Hawk won The Guardian Award in 1975.

Reviews

[Chantal · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting story about forgotten times in history. Really like there was a book for kids and grownups to enjoy. Loved the simple story line and simple text. An okay read for the week.

[EmBe · Rating 4 out of 5]

200000 Jahre in der Vergangenheit. Der Clan des Mondfalken ist von einem anderen Clan aus seinem Territorium vertrieben worden. Auf dem Weg durch die Wüste lässt der Stamm die Kinder, deren Eltern nicht mehr leben, zurück. Die halbwüchsigen Geschwister Suth und Noli verlassen aber die Erwachsenen, als Noli den Mondfalken, dem Totemtier des Stammes, in sich selbst vernimmt, das ihr rät, einen anderen Weg zu gehen. Sie kehren zu den Kindern zurück und schlagen sich mit ihnen gemeinsam durch die Wüste. Ihre Gemeinschaft bewährt sich im Kampf gegen einen Adler und sie erreichen ein fruchtbares von einem Bergkamm eingefasstes Tal, in dem der Clan des Affen lebt. Diese Menschen verlangen aber, dass sie sich dem Clan anschließen, also nun auf die Stimme des Affen hören. Noli, die bald den Respekt der uralten Seherin des Clans erwirbt, kann bald die Stimme des Mondfalken nicht mehr vernehmen.
Überhaupt stimmt etwas in diesem Tal nicht. Manche sind verkrüppelt, und oft hat das Wasser des naheliegenden Sees einen üblen Geruch. Ehe sich eine Entscheidung über die Zukunft der Kinder anbahnt, erschüttert ein Erdbeben das ganze Tal, das sich bald darauf als Krater eines wieder aktiv gewordenen Vulkans und so zu einer Todesfalle für alles Leben in ihm herausstellt.
Die Kinder des Mondfalken, die sich schon nicht mehr in der Senke aufgehalten haben, können fliehen und durchqueren abermals eine dürre Landschaft, bis sie schließlich ein anderes Tal erreichen. Hier treffen sie auf stumme, aber friedvolle Vormenschen. Die Kinder lernen mit ihnen auszukommen, aber auch hier gibt es Gefahren (auch in Gestalt eines alten einzelgängerischen Löwen), die bewältigt werden müssen. Und hier findet Noli auch ein neue Stimme in ihrem Innern, denn alte Mondfalke ist verstummt und ein neuer ist an seine Stelle getreten. Ihre Reise ist jedoch in diesem Tal noch nicht zu Ende.
Zwischen die einzelnen Kapitel sind Mythen um die (göttlichen) Totemtiere, von Dickinson geschrieben, aber wohl bestehenden afrikanischen Mythen nachempfunden. Damit gibt Dickinson nicht nur einen zusätzlichen Einblick in die Vorstellungswelt der Menschen der Urzeit, sondern er reflektiert spielerisch auch die Rolle des Menschen.
Dieser Roman ist zuerst bei Carlsen als Jugendbuch aufgelegt worden. Nicht nur deshalb ist es aus der Perspektive der Kinder, die langsam erwachsen werden, erzählt. Da ist es stimmig, dass die Sätze kurz und einfach gehalten sind. So ist ein knapp erzählter Roman entstanden, der sich ganz auf die Sichtweise der Vormenschen einlässt.
Peter Dickinson erzählt eine spannende Geschichte der Gefährdung und der Irrungen der Menschen, die einer gefährlichen und unberechenbaren Natur ausgeliefert sind. Dass es die Menschheit schlussendlich in ihrer Entwicklung bis in die Gegenwart geschafft hat, erscheint nicht als geradliniger Weg, sondern man spürt es in diesem Roman mehr als dass man es sicher erkennen kann, dass ihre Entwicklung auch einen anderen Weg hätte nehmen können, oder aber dass sie durch Naturkatastrophen auch ganz aussterben hätte können.
Das fantastische Element des Romans, die Verbindung zu den magisch-mystischen Totemtieren, den Vorläufern der späteren Götter, ist ein wichtiger Faktor beim Überlebenskampf. Es ist die Fähigkeit der Menschen, sich aus der eigenen Identität heraus zu lösen, die Phantasie für sich zu nutzen und sich selbst nicht nur als Teil der materiellen Welt zu sehen sondern in einem größeren metaphysischen Zusammenhang (wobei das im Weltbild der Frühmenschen wohl zusammengehörte) zu sehen, die ihm letztlich das Überleben sichern. Das hat Dickinson recht anschaulich gemacht, und das zeichnet diesen Roman aus, der für Jugendliche geschrieben wurde, aber für auch Erwachsene sehr lesenswert ist.
"Suths Geschichte" ist Teil einer großangelegten Vorzeitsaga. Kos und Manus Geschichte wird weitererzählt, die Staffel der Geschichte ein Stück weiter hin zur Gegenwart getragen.

[Jo · Rating 2 out of 5]

The blurb said the orphans struggled to survive and be brought to safety. I struggled to finish the145 pages - the last 50 were skimmed. However I did like the Oldtales that were between chapters (3*).

[Lucy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had these books since I was a kid and I picked up the first one because of a readathon. This is a children's book about the first humans. Suth is the leader of a pack of children left behind because they are smaller and weaker, so they would slow down the Kin (humans descended from the first animals/gods). They meet humans from another Kin, who are welcoming to them but for the reason that they bring new blood to the inbred group. The fact that Suth didn't seem to want to have children with the girl they had designated from him was irrelevant and there was a distinct sense of slight menace to the whole situation, even as Suth strove to prove himself as a man and keep all the children in his 'family' close.

I enjoyed it. The ending had some great foreshadowing for it, I liked Suth even when he wasn't listening to the other children in his family, and I like the fact that the other books in the series are from different POVs.

4 stars!

[shrug city · Rating 2 out of 5]

The vibes are rancid....... talking about an imagined prehistoric "tribal" universe but written by a white guy SO. Exactly what you would imagine from that description.

[Char · Rating 4 out of 5]

For my full review please visit my blog: The Kin #1 Suth's Story @ From the Shadows I Review

Wow. I loved this book so much. The scene setting was incredible and the chapters being broken up with oldtales inbetween them really helped to keep the story fresh and added depth to the whole thing. I loved the oldtales because they gave an insight into how the people believed their world began. The writing was exquisite, I thoroughly enjoyed it. I also want to point out that the premise intrigued me and I'm so glad I enjoyed this story because I would've been gutted if I hadn't.

The only character that truly matters in this story is Suth because it's his story into the world of adulthood. He's written extremely well and doesn't automatically get everything he's ever desired. His emotions are well portrayed and I think they're obvious even to the kids that this book is actually aimed at. Although Suth is the most important character, he wasn't my favourite. My favourite character was a girl called Tinu. I think she was written realistically and I loved every moment that she was on the page.

Overall I adored this, really I did. The premise is huge and would make an awesome adult novel but the author has managed to make it an awesome kids story. I keep saying kids because I can't believe it, I personally think it's harder to make a story understandable for children as you aren't always sure what words they know and which they don't. As I have already said, the writing was stellar and the story solid. I recommend this to people of all ages.

[Lanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting story about early man in Africa. And since I've recently be interested in pre history novels, & this seemed like a good choice. :)

"Suth's Story" is s tale about a boy at the dawn of time, who looses his family & must now care for his young friends, struggling to keep them together as thier own tribe, or "Kin", as they say, even when faced with pushy, controlling members of another group of Kin.

It's a simple written story about family & maybe a bit of a coming of age story. The simplicity of the writing style works here, since we are dealing with cavemen. :) I really feel for poor Suth & his friends/family. Its sad, but I think we must except this. It was a super hard time to live in. & the old tales in between the chapters really add to the world building, giving the reader a deeper understanding of the characters' religion.

I must say though, that sometimes things aren't explained so well, & I've had to reread s few passages to make sense of it. :/ other than that it's been pretty good.

It's a good, quick read & id recommend it for fans of "earth's children" series.

[Sophie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really good book, meant for children but it can be interesting for all ages. The book is thoughtful, and portrays life at the dawn of civilisation in quite a realistic way - when we don't necessarily have as much recorded information of the time. The 'Oldtales' put between chapters complimented the storyline, and we got to know and understand what was happening better as we went through the book because of these myths.
Out of all the characters, I think I am most interested in Tinu. I personally believe that her character is more developed than the others, as we know that she is timid and shy, but still has a budding mind, whereas with the others we only have brief understandings.

[Miss Amanda · Rating 4 out of 5]

gr 4-6 210 pgs


Prehistoric. After his clan the Moonhawks are attacked by strangers, Suth, guided by Noli's visions, leaves the surviving clan members and go in search of a new "Good Place". When they find a valley full of food and strangers, Suth and his group are happy at first until they realize this clan has no plans to let them leave and instead expects them to join their clan.

Interesting story. Chapters alternate between Suth's experiences and folktales about his people's beginnings. The first book in a quartet

[Shania · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book I've read in Year 4 and haven't forgotten since. The dialect was a little confusing to me then, but it sucked me right in and I enjoyed re-reading it over and over just to get a better understanding of the story. I've haven't had a chance to read the rest to the books in the Kin series, and it's something I'd like to rectify soon.

[The Third Place A Teen Library]

K DIC kin

Fantasy