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The Story of Ab
Excerpt from The Story of Ab: A Tale of the Time, of the Cave Man
This is the story of Ab, a man of the Age of Stone, who lived so long ago that we cannot closely fix the date, and who loved and fought well.
In his work the author has been cordially assisted by some of the ablest searchers of two continents into the life history of prehistoric times. With characteristic helpfulness and interest, these already burdened students have aided and encouraged him, and to them he desires to express his sense of profound obligation and his earnest thanks.
Once only does the writer depart from accepted theories of scientific research.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
This is the story of Ab, a man of the Age of Stone, who lived so long ago that we cannot closely fix the date, and who loved and fought well.
In his work the author has been cordially assisted by some of the ablest searchers of two continents into the life history of prehistoric times. With characteristic helpfulness and interest, these already burdened students have aided and encouraged him, and to them he desires to express his sense of profound obligation and his earnest thanks.
Once only does the writer depart from accepted theories of scientific research.
About the Publisher
Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com
This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.
- GenresHistorical Fiction
368 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1897
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
January 30, 2026
I wanted to read The Story of Ab after finishing Before Adam by Jack London. Ab was published in 1897 approximately 10 years prior to the publication Adam, but both works use prehistoric humans as their main theme.
While Stanley Waterloo accused London of plagiarism, after reading Ab, it is clear to me that there was no plagiarism involved. At worst, London wanted to tell a similarly themed story in his own way, possibly thinking that he could tell it better. This brings to mind Hemingway’s Nobel Prize acceptance speech when he says, “[A writer] should always try for something that has never been done or that others have tried and failed."
The two books cover two distinctly different types of people. Adam focuses on protohumans dating back about 5 million years, and Ab focuses on the current version of us as we existed about 80,000 years ago. Both writers create a different set of characters that reflect the behaviors, speech, and intelligence associated with these two unique points in our evolutionary development. However, both writers radically borrow elements from other time periods in order to make their respective stories work.
The largest similarities between the two works reside in the commonalities of prehistoric life. Throughout pre-history, our ancestors were both the hunters and the hunted, we moved through trees as easily as we moved over land, we loved and wanted to be loved, and we socialized to survive. Some of the accusations made by Waterloo involved London writing of these things in Before Adam.
The The Story of Ab is the better of the two novels. While Waterloo’s writing is a bit too formal and stiff for the subject, he did a far better job of showing the feelings and emotions of his characters. He also created a more fluid plot that was less episodic than London’s work. And most importantly, Waterloo created a story that had a course to follow as Ab progresses through his life.
So why the accusation by Waterloo? My guess is that Waterloo was trying to generate a bit of attention for his work by bouncing some noise off of the brightest star of writing in 1906. After all, he succeed in getting me to read The Story of Ab.
While Stanley Waterloo accused London of plagiarism, after reading Ab, it is clear to me that there was no plagiarism involved. At worst, London wanted to tell a similarly themed story in his own way, possibly thinking that he could tell it better. This brings to mind Hemingway’s Nobel Prize acceptance speech when he says, “[A writer] should always try for something that has never been done or that others have tried and failed."
The two books cover two distinctly different types of people. Adam focuses on protohumans dating back about 5 million years, and Ab focuses on the current version of us as we existed about 80,000 years ago. Both writers create a different set of characters that reflect the behaviors, speech, and intelligence associated with these two unique points in our evolutionary development. However, both writers radically borrow elements from other time periods in order to make their respective stories work.
The largest similarities between the two works reside in the commonalities of prehistoric life. Throughout pre-history, our ancestors were both the hunters and the hunted, we moved through trees as easily as we moved over land, we loved and wanted to be loved, and we socialized to survive. Some of the accusations made by Waterloo involved London writing of these things in Before Adam.
The The Story of Ab is the better of the two novels. While Waterloo’s writing is a bit too formal and stiff for the subject, he did a far better job of showing the feelings and emotions of his characters. He also created a more fluid plot that was less episodic than London’s work. And most importantly, Waterloo created a story that had a course to follow as Ab progresses through his life.
So why the accusation by Waterloo? My guess is that Waterloo was trying to generate a bit of attention for his work by bouncing some noise off of the brightest star of writing in 1906. After all, he succeed in getting me to read The Story of Ab.
August 12, 2015
150815: an engaging vision of prehistoric humans, according to science of the time 1897. similar to a film I think from the 1980s called Quest for Fire, not quite as primitive, probably outdated by now as well, this recalls what physical anthropology I took at u, and catches high points of technological innovations, as well as enduring Victorian conception of 'natural' roles for male, female, mother, father... have to think of what it meant at the time written. how intriguing, how anachronistic, how romantic (and not) portrayal of noble savage ancestry...
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March 7, 2013Loved this as a kid. Loved it when I grew up and still do. There was one jarring note at the very end but it actually rings true--I just missed it as a kid. Like Jean Auel's books without all the modern adornment.
August 21, 2015
Though the theories which this story is based on are now very dated (the book was originally printed in 1897), that didn't detract from an enjoyable and adventurous read. Recommended to anyone who enjoyed the movie "Quest for Fire" or who likes the stone age genre in general.
April 12, 2017
What a great book.
I love this age of man. The discoveries and inventions are wondrous to behold. I really would like to find more books like this.
I love this age of man. The discoveries and inventions are wondrous to behold. I really would like to find more books like this.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews