Review: Zan-Gah, A Prehistoric Adventure

Zan, a boy from a brutal prehistoric world, sets out to find and rescue his twin, Dael.  Along the way he faces captivity, danger, and friendship in unexpected places...

Entertainment: ★★★

I felt this book was probably intended for an audience a little younger than me, so it was a little simplistic for me.

Plot: ★★★

Although it was a little predictable, the plot had an interesting setting and was fairly enjoyable to read.

Characters: ★★★

I liked the characters in and of themselves, and honestly they deserve a higher rating.  However, I was completely confused by their interactions.  Literally a few pages after meeting a female character, Zan-Gah exclaims to himself that he loves her.  I actually thought, "Wait, what? When did this happen?"  Dialogue was sparse and the character's relationships to each other were told, not shown, which left them feeling a little clunky and awkward.

Writing: ★★

Zan-Gah had odd little "teacher moments" that I wasn't sure if I liked - there would suddenly be an educational paragraph on the lives of Zan's real-life models, that really did nothing to advance the story.  I liked learning about the prehistorical people, but I wish it could have been saved for the end or somewhere it would not have slowed down the story.  Also, there was an enormous amount of telling-not-showing.  However, I liked the description, and enjoyed the wordplay on the names - for example, the character meant to "hold up a mirror" to Zan and his personality is named Naz, or Zan backwards.  I like when little details like that are slipped into a story.

End Result: three stars.  A decent book, but not amazingly excellent.