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The Last Neanderthal

Claire Cameron (Goodreads Author)

3.66 · Rating details · 3,020 ratings · 546 reviews

From the author of The Bear, the enthralling story of two women separated by millennia, but linked by an epic journey that will transform them both

Forty thousand years in the past, the last family of Neanderthals roams the earth. After a crushingly hard winter, their numbers are low, but Girl, the oldest daughter, is just coming of age and her family is determined to trave ...more

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ebook, 288 pages

Published May 2nd 2017 by Little, Brown and Company

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3.66 ·

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· 3,020 ratings · 546 reviews

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May 04, 2017 Fran rated it really liked it

Paleoarchaeologist Dr. Rosemund Gale, working on a dig in present day France, makes an astonishing discovery. She unearths fossilized bones of a Neanderthal girl and a modern day man, facing each other, and buried in the same strata. Radioactive dating indicates that the Neanderthal and the Homo Sapien co-existed, perhaps forming a loving relationship. Rose had discovered a Neanderthal girl 40,000 years after her death. Taking a leave of absence from her tenure track teaching post, Rose intended Paleoarchaeologist Dr. Rosemund Gale, working on a dig in present day France, makes an astonishing discovery. She unearths fossilized bones of a Neanderthal girl and a modern day man, facing each other, and buried in the same strata. Radioactive dating indicates that the Neanderthal and the Homo Sapien co-existed, perhaps forming a loving relationship. Rose had discovered a Neanderthal girl 40,000 years after her death. Taking a leave of absence from her tenure track teaching post, Rose intended to make sure she published and was credited with the find.

Neanderthal culture was dwindling. Living in matriarchal groups with a Big Mother at the helm, sons were expected to bring home a breeding female chosen at the yearly spring fish run held at the confluence of the river forks. Daughters were expected to live outside their family by winning a place as Big Mother in a different family. The journey to the meeting place could occur only after the ice melted. Girl's current family consisted of Big Mother, Him, Bent and Runt. Tragedy struck when Bent was killed by a bison while trying to protect Girl during a bison attack. Soon after, Girl and Him, both hormonal, mate. A pregnant Girl is cast out by big Mother, the decision maker, and told she must travel alone to the fish run. Big Mother hopes Girl's resourcefulness and determination will enable her to arrive safely. Girl's survivalist skills are stretched to the limit as she travels to her destination.

Girl's story was very compelling. The low density family lived in a hut tucked in a granite cliff and protected from predators. They slept as one body, curled around each other to stay warm. Their covers were bison hides. By violating the taboo of incest, Girl was forced to search for safety and sustenance.

The parallel story of Rose's pregnancy and her determination to continue to head the archeological dig was not as engaging. Rose's single mindedness made her overbearing, not sympathetic.

Author Claire Cameron's extensive research turned "The Last Neanderthal" into a well crafted tome. The latest DNA genome has determined that up to four percent of the current European and Asian populations have Neanderthal DNA. Cameron's novel describes a connection, perhaps a love connection between two intelligent species. A good read.

Thank you Little, Brown and Company and Net Galley for the opportunity to read and review "The Last Neanderthal". ...more

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Aug 30, 2017 karen rated it liked it

i was a terrible online book club participant - i did all of the assigned reading, sure, but i only showed up to respond to one round of questions, after which point i just read everyone else’s responses like some ghostly book club lurker. i didn’t even drink any wine, which should make up at least 40% of book club activity.

my failure was one part down to me transitioning from a dayjob person to a nightjob person - with all the attendant physical and psychological horrors, and not having the ti ...more

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Apr 06, 2017 Diane S ☔ rated it liked it

France, a female archeologist finds the bones of two people, the bones displayed as if they are looking at each other at the time of their deaths. A very important discovery as it turns out because one of the skeletons is a female Neanderthal and the other a male homo sapiens.

This is a cleverly constructed book, as we go back to the time of the Neanderthal and our author reimagines a time when they were living. She uses a family, a mother, a girl, a boy and another boy, and a young boy that the ...more

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May 14, 2017 Jeanette rated it it was ok · review of another edition

It's 2.5 stars, but I just can't round it up. The ancient portion is too simplistic and inaccurate for being put into a "scientific" context to the present day story. And the present day story is just off and IMHO, poorly written in characterizations. It's similar to a YA level account of being a late thirties age pregnant woman who holds a PhD but which is put into the words and emotions of a teenager rather half denying the reality of outcome for her pregnancy. And the emotional and realistic ...more

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May 07, 2017 Laura rated it liked it · review of another edition

I adored the idea of this book! I still think that the concept has merit, but unfortunately, I don’t think it was well-done.

By far, the better sections of the book are those taking place in the distant past, and perhaps this is because we don’t know anything about how those characters would be, and whether or not they are realistic. They still felt fresh and interesting. . . unfortunately, the book description reveals where the plot will take us FIFTY PERCENT INTO THE NOVEL, so the suspense abou I adored the idea of this book! I still think that the concept has merit, but unfortunately, I don’t think it was well-done.

By far, the better sections of the book are those taking place in the distant past, and perhaps this is because we don’t know anything about how those characters would be, and whether or not they are realistic. They still felt fresh and interesting. . . unfortunately, the book description reveals where the plot will take us FIFTY PERCENT INTO THE NOVEL, so the suspense about what is going to happen is lacking for most of the read.
Speaking of suspense, is it a technique to have some type of action finally happening, and then draw out that imperative by suddenly switching over to an observation about a boring subject, like where or when hazelnuts grow?? This happens frequently during exciting buffalo hunts and other adventures, to the point that I wondered if the author was holding back deliberately. It did not pique my interest, to say the least.
There are some other fiddly things I noticed, such as, “If they can smell this, why can’t they smell that?” or “when did she bring that along??” or “do we need to use the very modern terms ‘pooped’ or ‘dirt nap’ all of a sudden?” but they are not as relevant. For my own reference, because it’s a pet peeve, “shock” is used to describe hair at least seven times.

The modern parts of the novel felt extremely weak and almost cartoony to me. The protagonist is frankly pretty irritating, and not on purpose. She seems to have zero ability to use foresight or make a decision, and I just kind of wanted to scream at her for one reason or another during each modern chapter. Maybe this is even compounded when contrasted (intentionally!) with Girl, the Neanderthal. Rose has so many options and resources that she chooses not to use or even contemplate! I think the intent of writing two narratives about motherhood designed to mirror each other caused the author to focus on that idea, rather than on what Rose could actually do, and what would make **any sense**.
The protagonist and one other character—I won’t reveal which, because it comes so late that it’s actually kind of A SPOILER—are the only ones which show any dimension. I wish I could believe that the other characters seem so flat as a statement about the Neanderthal-era characters! I suspect that they were just kind of thrown in as scenery for Rose, and that. . . happens. I mean, does the Dr. Pepper swilling jokester assistant really need to be a dynamic character? It’s just that we do spend a lot of time with these as we’re waiting for Rose to waffle around.

This is a pretty scathing review, but I actually didn’t despise the book as much as it sounds like I did. I thought that most of the Neanderthal narrative, and the very-ends of both narratives, were quite good. There were some things that I genuinely didn’t expect (which seems difficult, considering that one protagonist is finding the other’s bones), and some plot points that felt genuine and raw and affecting. I ended up happy for Rose, against all odds!
I think that perhaps the author had a really great creative spark upon seeing the photo (included at the end) of the skeletons, and that’s not a bad thing. A lot of people seem to have loved the result, and I don’t have to be one of them. Much Warm to Claire Cameron. ...more

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Aug 01, 2017 Book Riot Community added it

I couldn’t stop thinking about this book after I put it down. Telling the parallel stories of Rosamund Gale, a present-day archaeologist uncovering the find of her career, and Girl, a Neanderthal woman coming of age centuries before her, this novel explores how humans are linked—by DNA, by history, and by shared experiences—to our Neanderthal relatives. The scenes set 40,000 years in the past sing with urgency and tension as Girl tries to survive on her own in an unforgiving landscape. While the ...more

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Mar 30, 2018 Tatiana rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2018, historical

3.5 stars

This is basically a lecture on prehistoric life and archeology in a form of a novel. Mostly worked for me, although I think the book would have been better without the dry modern-time perspective. It didn’t really have any life in it until almost the very end. But the perspective of the Neanderthal girl was impressively vivid and raw. It’s hard to know how early humans lived and thought, but the author had a beautiful take on it, emphasizing the deep connection of humans to their surrou ...more

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Jul 07, 2017 Rana rated it it was ok

Eh. I would much rather have just read Clan of the Cave Bear.

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Jun 22, 2017 Carol (Bookaria) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017, fiction, great-book-covers

“Words could be empty. It was the return of a gesture that held meaning”
― Claire Cameron, The Last Neanderthal: A Novel

This story alternates between the present-day life of an archeologist who found the remains of a neanderthal and the life 40,000 years ago of a neanderthal family.

The book is very interesting, the modern-day scientist is the main character of the present-day timeline and describes theories about neanderthal lives and processes related to archeology findings. The "Girl" is the ...more

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May 29, 2017 Nancy rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: netgalley

In her new novel, The Last Neanderthal, Claire Cameron draws on new scientific information to recreate the world when our human ancestors and Neanderthals coexisted. Of course, DNA sequencing of Neanderthals has proven that they are also part of our ancestral heritage. No longer can we imagine that human superiority overcame an animalistic, inferior group. So what then did cause the extinction of the Neanderthal population?

In this novel, Girl is part of a small family group that just survives, l ...more

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Mar 16, 2017 Bandit rated it really liked it

Recent science has been rethinking the way we're originally perceived out distant relatives, indeed related if only by a small margins due to the long ago crossbreeding of their species with homo sapiens. This book does more than rethink, it vividly reimagines the Neanderthals as all too sentient, intelligent and able individuals. While that portrayal might be viewed as too steeped in anthropomorphism, it's nevertheless very compelling, as the book follows one young Neanderthal girl's journey. T ...more

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Mar 19, 2017 Martie Nees Record rated it it was amazing

Pub. Date: April 25, 2017
Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company

This is a novel about the makings of the female species. There are two female protagonists. One lives in the present and the other lives forty thousand years ago. The author, Claire Cameron, weaves the two females’ very different lives together in flashbacks and flash-forwards. Cameron writes her novel as if it is a thesis, with a theory that needs to be proved. Her hypothesis is that our ancestors were strikingly similar to the human Pub. Date: April 25, 2017
Publisher: Little, Brown, and Company

This is a novel about the makings of the female species. There are two female protagonists. One lives in the present and the other lives forty thousand years ago. The author, Claire Cameron, weaves the two females’ very different lives together in flashbacks and flash-forwards. Cameron writes her novel as if it is a thesis, with a theory that needs to be proved. Her hypothesis is that our ancestors were strikingly similar to the humans of today. Her end notes have an impressive list of references on the subject, showing that she did her homework. In the hands of a lesser author, this dissertation-like focus could be the book's weakness. Instead, her storytelling skills are so good that it is the book’s strength. It reads as a historical fiction, a mystery, a fast-paced suspense tale, and a love letter to the human race, with an emphasis on the female ability to create life.

The modern day woman is a pregnant archaeologist who is racing to get grant funding to continue her work on Neanderthal artifacts before her baby is born. The bones she finds in her dig are of two bodies and they are a shocking discovery because they are of a female Neanderthal and a human male buried together, positioned as if embracing. In the distant past, the Neanderthal teenage girl is also pregnant. She is racing to find shelter before her baby is born. It is crucial that this baby lives since she knows that her species’ numbers are low. Her mother taught her that her reason for being born is to reproduce so the “family” can continue. (Family here can mean their immediate family but is also used as their word for all Neanderthals). It is clear to the reader that the female bones found by the archaeologist are the bones of the female Neanderthal protagonist. Both the Neanderthal girl and the modern day woman have very difficult births, one without her partner, in a country where she doesn’t speak the language, and the other alone in a hole in the earth during a snowstorm. Both almost lose their life giving birth and have to decide whether to save their own life or the life of their unborn baby. This type of choice always makes for a thought provoking and heart-tugging read.

By itself, the story of the modern day heroine would have been a good feminist tale, asking if working women can have it all—a fulfilling career and family life? The author adds in a postpartum psychosisepisode, and the Archaeologist begins to think about killing her baby. This temporary madness makes for an interesting story but it has been written before in “All She Ever Wanted” by Rosalind Noonan and other stories on this subject. But the story of the Neanderthal girl is so intriguing that I sometimes became annoyed when the next chapter focused on the Archaeologist. In the girl’s story, I became lost in the world of 40 thousand years ago, when the last families of Neanderthals roamed the earth. They were incredible people, and I choose to call them people because of what I learned in this book. Yet, they had an animal-like fairness to them that modern humans do not have. Unless desperate, they never killed a baby animal. They understood that this would disrupt the balance of living creatures, because then the baby bison would not grow and continue the circle of life.

I became fascinated with other side stories in the novel too, such as the girl’s friendship with a tiger too old to hunt. He would come to visit her like a pet and she would give him strips of meat, usually cooked. (The Neanderthals would eat raw meat immediately after a successful hunt but once brought home the carcass is cooked). The Neanderthal girl and the tiger jointly knew that if it came down to it, one would kill the other even though they were friends. It is survival of the fittest with a certain kindness and respect. Another character that intrigued me is a boy child that the mother Neanderthal takes in when she finds him lost and orphaned. He became a much loved family member even though they see him as an odd looking child as well as rather strange. He had impressive qualities that they did not have. Something about his arms allowed him to throw and hit a target as only an adult could. Unlike the others, who rarely use their voice to communicate in words, he chattered all day long, driving the others crazy. And a difference that made this reader laugh out loud is that the family worried that when his time came he will never find a mate, because he is such an ugly looking male, no female would find him attractive enough to want him. (Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I guess Neanderthals were not physically attracted to humans' facial features).

I will not share what happens to each of the female heroines or their babies. It would be a spoiler. I will share that one of my favorite parts in the Archaeologist’s story is when she is in labor and couldn’t talk with the doctor so they locked eyes and somehow managed to communicate without out words, just as the Neanderthals did. This book makes me want to pay attention to my own forgotten senses lost from lack of use. I often joke that my sinus and spine pains can tell me when the weather is about to change. Could this be how modern Homo sapiens modified our alertness to nature? And can we once again regain instincts that we have lost? The author made me truly feel for our ancient ancestors as if they were my relatives and not just extinct creatures that I once read about in a history book. This is a powerful novel that made me often tear and sometimes laugh, all while exploring the concept of what makes us human?

I received this book from the publisher at no cost in exchange for an honest review.

Find all my reviews at https://books6259.wordpress.com/ ...more

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Apr 29, 2018 Sarah rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: historical, aty-in-52-books-2018, pop-sugar-2018

Someone told me when I picked this book I should read Clan of the Cave Bear instead. I’m reasonably sure I should have listened.

As it turns out, following a Neanderthal around in their daily life is just not that interesting. I enjoyed Rose's parts, but that made up about 5 or 6 chapters. Not enough to sustain a whole novel.

On the surface, this is a novel about how Neanderthals lived and how they might have presumably become extinct. At the core, this is a novel about the shared experiences of m ...more

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May 10, 2017 Krista rated it liked it

Shelves: can-con, 2017

The two skeletons looking into each other's eyes will stop people dead in their tracks. All we need to say is that one is a modern human and the other is Neanderthal...the two skeletons suggested a deeper relationship that could live in the realm of everyone's imagination.

description

Imagine this picture of the “Valdaro Lovers” – included at the end of The Last Neanderthal and cited as inspiration for author Claire Cameron – but instead of it being two human skeletons, what if it was that of a Homo Sapie
The two skeletons looking into each other's eyes will stop people dead in their tracks. All we need to say is that one is a modern human and the other is Neanderthal...the two skeletons suggested a deeper relationship that could live in the realm of everyone's imagination.

description

Imagine this picture of the “Valdaro Lovers” – included at the end of The Last Neanderthal and cited as inspiration for author Claire Cameron – but instead of it being two human skeletons, what if it was that of a Homo Sapien male and a Neanderthal female? As the modern Eurasian genome tends to have some admixed Neanderthal ancestry, we know that the two groups could (and did) interbreed, so it is interesting to imagine under what circumstances that might have occurred. This book is Cameron's take on contact between the two groups, and while the concept is intriguing, it unfortunately falls short for me in execution.

The book is told in two parts: In the sections from forty thousand years ago, we view the world through the eyes of Girl; an adolescent female Neanderthal who is just reaching maturity, and as a clever and emotional being, her observations and actions are definitely more human than animal. In the sections from today, we follow Rose Gale; an archaeologist who has discovered a human/Neanderthal burial site, and as she must both negotiate the bureaucracy of securing funding for her dig and manage the power dynamics at the site (all while dealing with the unique challenges of being a woman in charge), Rose's storyline deliberately mirrors that of Girl – as though a Skyped conference call with a museum director has as much at stake as trying to find shelter in a winter storm. And while I really did like the parts in prehistory, the deliberate parallels and Rose's bullheadedness (which seems to cause all of her problems) just felt forced.

I recognise that Cameron's goal was to correct any lingering misconceptions that Neanderthals were knuckle-dragging beasts, or some missing link between the apes and us, so it was a useful conceit to have Rose in the present explaining to other characters what the latest research has revealed about our Neanderthal cousins. But the science is undermined by Cameron's imaginative flights: I appreciate learning that Neanderthals had a sensitive spot on their top gums that could “read” the air, but I can't believe that Girl could climb a tree, retract her top lip, and discover every warm-blooded being that passed for miles around for the past days and weeks. I really enjoyed reading about how Girl interacted with her family group, but rolled my eyes at the idea that, tangled up in sleep at night, they could share dreams and thereby discover what each other has seen and learned that day. But here's my biggest complaint: (view spoiler)

Again, I did truly enjoy the parts from the past – Cameron weaves an interesting and exciting story of survival and humanity under harsh conditions – but the modern storyline didn't really work for me. It all evens out to a low three stars. ...more

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Apr 09, 2017 Sonja Arlow rated it liked it

Shelves: historical-fiction, 2017-read

About 20km from my house is the Cradle of Humankind, the place where some of the oldest human remains reside. With a recent new discovery of a well-preserved skull of the Homo Naledi species the interest in this subject matter was all over the media.

So when I saw this book it seemed like the perfect time to delve into pre-historic fiction. The story of Girl and her family trying to survive 40,000 years ago was an interesting one. The author clearly tried her best to make the imagined life of the ...more

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May 20, 2017 Sumaiyya rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Full review is on my blog Sumaiyya Reads: https://sumaiyyareads.wordpress.com/2...

This book follows two characters separated by 40,000 years. One is a prehistoric Neanderthal Girl, the daughter of one of the last families of Neanderthals. The other is Rose, an archaeologist who discovers Neanderthal remains that she's excavating. Both are connected with their shared experience of pregnancy. I really enjoyed reading this unique concept and I think this novel has two really strong threads; the fir ...more

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Apr 27, 2017 Karen Kay rated it liked it

Shelves: arc-netgalley, prehistoric, netgalley-read-2017

I received this ARC from netgalley.com in exchange for a review.

The story begins with Girl and the last family of Neanderthals roams the earth. When her family dies, Girl is left to care for Runt a young boy with unknown history that her family adopted.

Rose, running an archaeological dig finds the bones of a Neanderthal laying beside and facing the bones of a Homo sapien. When Rose discovers knows is pregnant, she endeavors to complete her work at the dig before she is forced to surrender the ...more

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Mar 27, 2017 Susan rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

Shelves: first-reads

Full disclosure: I am a female and an archaeologist, although prehistory is not my area of expertise. I found this look into the psyche of a young Neanderthal woman fascinating and touching. I am aware of recent research into the possibility that Neanderthals had a much more complex culture than they have historically been given credit for. If the recent popularity of home DNA/ancestry tests has given us anything really interesting it is the fact that many people have some Neanderthal ancestors ...more

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Sep 10, 2017 Jennifer rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: 2017-books

really enjoyed this book. currently discussing in an online book club throughout september, so won't say much now. curious how/if my feelings with change through talking about the book this month?

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Feb 13, 2017 Kelsi H rated it really liked it

Shelves: netgalley, read-in-2017

Please read all of my reviews at http://ultraviolentlit.blogspot.ca!

The Last Neanderthal is an innovative new novel from the author of The Bear. Once again, Cameron uses a haunting, unexpected voice to tell a story that explores what it means to be human, particularly as a woman. This novel connects two women who are separated by 40,000 years – and yet they both face the same struggles and taboos as they attempt to reconcile motherhood with their own desires.

Thousands of years ago, in what is no Please read all of my reviews at http://ultraviolentlit.blogspot.ca!

The Last Neanderthal is an innovative new novel from the author of The Bear. Once again, Cameron uses a haunting, unexpected voice to tell a story that explores what it means to be human, particularly as a woman. This novel connects two women who are separated by 40,000 years – and yet they both face the same struggles and taboos as they attempt to reconcile motherhood with their own desires.

Thousands of years ago, in what is now France, Girl is the oldest daughter in a close-knit Neanderthal family. They are hunters and gatherers, with minimal language, and yet they find ways to express themselves and their feelings for each other. Big Mother is the respected matriarch, doing her best to raise her children to be strong and healthy. However, she cannot prevent Girl from growing up and exploring her newfound sexuality in dangerous ways. As the family travels to their annual meeting place to find Girl a mate, they face many problems along the way – including their own complex relationships.

In present day France, archaeologist Rosamunde Gale makes an incredible discovery – a Neanderthal female buried in an intimate embrace with a Homo Sapiens male. As Rose and her assistant slowly reveal the burial site, they realize that it could lead to a reevaluation of everything we know about our human roots. While scientists formerly scorned Neanderthals as an inferior species that was simply a step on the way to Homo Sapiens evolution, we now know that Neanderthal DNA can be found in up to four percent of the current European and Asian populations. The exposure of Rose’s cross-species couple could be the answer to how this happened - instead of a stepping stone in evolution, the Neanderthals were perhaps close cousins and even lovers to Homo Sapiens.

When she finds out that she’s pregnant, Rose races to finish her excavation before it is taken from her by the male financial backers who don’t believe that motherhood is compatible with the rigors of archaeology. Simply because of her gender, Rose is forced to defend her abilities to continue the job at which she excels – she struggles to succeed as a working woman, providing for her family both financially and emotionally. As we jump to the past, Girl’s journey is also fraught with disaster – small issues soon become life-threatening, and the family diminishes quickly. Girl is left alone to care for Runt, a child who was adopted into the family, and she realizes how much more difficult it is to survive the winter with the responsibilities of a child.

There is a clear link between the two women across time, as they struggle to reconcile their work and desires with the obligations of family and the strict bonds of being female. From Girl to Rose, 40,000 years have passed and yet it is still taboo for a woman to put herself before her family. While science and archaeology continue to show us that our past is much more complex than we realize, it is also true that the Neanderthal girl and the Homo Sapiens woman share more than just DNA.

This novel is an exploration of what it means to be human, specifically as a woman today, and how it is reflected on our past. It shows that survival always comes with compromise, and ultimately sacrifice. Both Girl and Rose follow their biological imperative to preserve their people, and yet they show us that there is room for individual desires and successes within their female roles. It is fascinating to see that an examination of a girl who lived thousands of years ago, can teach us about being human in the world today.

I received this book from Little, Brown & Company and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
...more

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Sep 01, 2017 Jennifer (aka EM) rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: maple-flavoured

Excellent. Beautifully imagined and paced. Entirely immersive. Gripping ending. Primal and elemental and female. Loved it.
______________________

ETA: After the first flush of finishing this novel, having read it inside of eight hours, I still think it is very strong but maybe wouldn't be as breathlessly prolific in my superlatives as I was above.

Its strength is in the story-telling - really, two stories - which come together at the end in a dramatic and, I found, really compelling way. There is n ...more

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Apr 25, 2017 Greg at 2 Book Lovers Reviews rated it really liked it · review of another edition

Shelves: greco-roman-historical-fiction, 2017, contemporary-adventure

I’ve always enjoyed a good historical book, usually the older the better. Well, with The Last Neanderthal, I’ve gone pre-historic. Claire Cameron’s story bounces back and forth between Girl, our Neanderthal protagonist, and Rosamund Gale, and archaeologist excavating a groundbreaking site.

Whenever I immerse myself in a book like this, one that starts quoting numbers and percentages, I ask myself, does the author have the science right? In the end, it’s a work of fiction, make it convincing and r ...more

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May 09, 2017 Luanne Ollivier rated it it was amazing · review of another edition

The Last Neanderthal is the newly released third book from Claire Cameron. Each book from Cameron has been completely different from the last. This latest springs from Cameron's fascination with Neanderthals.

Research has shown that some modern humans have inherited 1- 4% of their DNA from Neanderthals, indicating that 'rather than a more evolved version of Neanderthals, we are close cousins."

The Last Neanderthal is Cameron's imagining of that time - the end of the Neanderthals and the beginning The Last Neanderthal is the newly released third book from Claire Cameron. Each book from Cameron has been completely different from the last. This latest springs from Cameron's fascination with Neanderthals.

Research has shown that some modern humans have inherited 1- 4% of their DNA from Neanderthals, indicating that 'rather than a more evolved version of Neanderthals, we are close cousins."

The Last Neanderthal is Cameron's imagining of that time - the end of the Neanderthals and the beginning of humans.

Cameron's story is told through the eyes of Girl and her family far in the past. In the present it is Rose's voice. She is the archaeologist who has just uncovered the skeletons of a human and a Neanderthal buried together - facing each other.

Girl's voice was first and I was so drawn to her. Cameron imbues Girl and her family with, well - humanity. They care and respect each other. But the drive is to survive - to find enough to eat, to procreate and to see another season. I became so invested in this family, notably Girl, Runt and Big Mother. The reader knows what happens to the Neanderthals, but it is Cameron's imagining of Girl's thoughts, feeling and actions that brings the book to life. I enjoyed the description of their language, customs and culture. (And found myself reading more about Neanderthals on the web)

In present day, Rose's discovery of the skeletons is the pinnacle of her career and her research. But it coincides with major changes in her personal life and creates upheaval at home and at work. As Rose's life moves forward the similarities with the past become evident. Girl and Rose are not that different, despite the time separating them. "I know that if I had ever been fortunate enough to meet her, I would look into her eyes and know her. And maybe she could know me. We were so much the same."

The book ends on a great note, but I didn't want it to - I wanted more of Girl's story. The Last Neanderthal is another great read from Cameron - one that will make you feel, make you think and make you wonder.......
...more

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Mar 25, 2017 Kiki rated it it was amazing

Pre-hIstorical fiction! The setting is France: pre-historic and contemporary. Cameron gives life to Girl, a young neanderthal woman living with her very small family in the mountains of what we now know is France. And Rose, a British archaeologist who is also pregnant and unsure abut what her every next move will be, is all consumed with the discovery of a neanderthal skeleton and a modern day human skeleton that were found fossilized together. The two women are soon on a parallel journey that w ...more

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Feb 06, 2019 Dayla rated it it was ok

Shelves: fiction, historical-fiction, survival, ugh-so-frustrating

Review first appeared on my blog: Book Addict 24-7

This is a review of an ARC copy.

The Last Neanderthal by Claire Cameron is an extremely promising book. From the beautiful cover, to the seemingly enticing story, Cameron’s novel sold itself pretty well. However, I was frustrated by various aspects of this novel because I felt like it could have dealt with various issues in a better way, and the jarring use of dual perspectives really took me out of the story more often than not.

The Last Neandert ...more

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Jul 10, 2017 Brittany rated it it was ok · review of another edition

Shelves: zchallenge-2017, fiction, would-not-read-again, historical-fiction

started out so well only to crash and burn into total destruction

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Jan 23, 2017 Angélique (MapleBooks) rated it liked it

Shelves: canadian-authors

Rating: 3.5

Have you seen movie The Quest For Fire (1981)? It features a group of prehistoric humans trying to re-acquire fire after they lost it in a battle. Their language is rudimentary and they mostly act like beasts. Although the movie claimed—not without some controversy—to reflect the research of the time, it was based on a novel written by J.-H. Rosny in… 1909! By and large, the perception of archaic humans had barely changed in seventeen years.
Maybe this helps to put in perspective the ...more

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Mar 05, 2017 Girl Well Read rated it liked it

Shelves: reviewed, netgalley

A special thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada and Doubleday Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Being a Canadian, I always like to read and review Canadian authors. I read Cameron's The Bear for a book club selection, I didn't love it, but I was eager to give her another chance.

An interesting premise—Cameron juxtaposes the last Neanderthal family against a parallel modern-day storyline. Initially I was unsure, Neanderthals? After finishing The Last Neanderthal, A special thank you to NetGalley and Penguin Random House Canada and Doubleday Canada for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Being a Canadian, I always like to read and review Canadian authors. I read Cameron's The Bear for a book club selection, I didn't love it, but I was eager to give her another chance.

An interesting premise—Cameron juxtaposes the last Neanderthal family against a parallel modern-day storyline. Initially I was unsure, Neanderthals? After finishing The Last Neanderthal, I'm glad that I requested something that normally I wouldn't be attracted to.

40,000 years in the past, the last Neanderthals are fighting for survival after a hard-fought winter. Their numbers are low, but Girl is coming of age and her family are determined to make the trek to the annual meeting place in hopes of securing her a mate to carry on their species. The small family's existence is further threatened by the elements and nature and Girl is left to care for Runt, a small foundling of unknown descent. Once again, Girl and Runt must face the winter and risk their survival.

In modern-day France, we meet archaeologist Rosamund Gale who has just learned that she is pregnant and worried about the repercussions of having a baby. The site that Rose is working at contains the remains of a female Neanderthal that appears to be embracing a Homo Sapiens male—were they lovers? This startling discovery has scientists reevaluating what they believed were our origins. With a race against impending motherhood, Rose does not want to give up her work after making incredible strides in a male-dominated field of study. She often has to defend her position simply because she is a woman. Rose begins to feel an incredible amount of pressure as the project in jeopardy of losing funding, and she has just learned that she is the sole bread winner after her partner Simon loses his teaching position.

Rose and Girl are linked through time by their pregnancies and experiences of what it means to be a woman, a mother, and to survive.

Primal, raw, and unique, this was an interesting read. ...more

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Jul 01, 2017 Lindy rated it did not like it

Shelves: fiction, bodies-and-technologies, historical-fiction, simians-cyborgs-and-women, 21st-century

The narratives we choose to construct around Neanderthals and how those narratives have changed over time fascinate me because they're usually semi-veiled ways of talking about race and racism, so that's why I read this book. And on that level The Last Neanderthal certainly provides plenty of material worth discussing. I wouldn't describe my reading experience as fun though.

Perhaps because I was already reading this allegorically and because most things we think we know about Neanderthals have b ...more

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May 21, 2017 Laura Frey (Reading in Bed) rated it it was ok

Were my expectations too high? Am I disappointed because this story of traumatic birth and postpartum depression didn't speak directly to me in the way I wanted? Are these dumb reasons to dislike a book?

Yes yes and yes. It has real flaws too - don't read this too close to reading Possession, which has a similar, "modern-day academic gets too close to their historical research subject" plot, but does it a hundred times better. But "you're not as good as AS Byatt" is not really that harsh... who t ...more

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About Claire Cameron

Claire Cameron

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Author of The Last Neanderthal (April 2017), The Bear and The Line Painter.

I am 2.5% Neanderthal, according to the 23 and Me DNA test. I have a gold tooth.

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“Words could be empty. It was the return of a gesture that held meaning. And” — 2 likes

“Big Mother believed that the measure of a life could be reduced to such small things, a count of the wrinkles to see how many laughs versus how many frowns a body had produced. Because of this, Girl knew that the old woman made sure to laugh often.” — 0 likes

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