Shaman
by Kim Stanley Robinson
Shaman is the story of the coming of age of a young man in a prehistoric time. Loon, orphaned at a young age, is raised by the pack’s shaman, Thorn, and the pack’s herbal healer, Heather. At the age of 12, he is sent off alone and naked into the forest for his wander. For two weeks (beginning the night of the full moon and ending the night of the new moon), he must find ways to survive hunger, the cold, and the ever-present dangers that lurk everywhere.
A shaman is a tribal leader who acts as intermediary between the earthly world and the supernatural world. He uses spiritual forces to predict the future as well as heal in the present. He leads the pack, teaches, and tells stories of the past and present so that history will be preserved.
We travel with Loon on his wander and then watch him grow to adulthood when he marries and fathers two children. We experience life as he knew it – the customs, the needs, the perils. Upon Thorn’s death, Loon becomes the pack’s shaman, a role he adapts to suit his personality and his “modern” thinking.
The joy of the hunt, the kill, and the satisfaction of hunger upon biting ravenously into the thigh of a freshly killed deer, is understood, and appreciated. The shivers of a frosty wet night without benefit of cover or fireside warmth is palpable. The loneliness and isolation of a blackened cave without even a flicker of light stings with fear and loneliness and trepidation. Life as it existed.
Yet there are passages such as the following that left only one word imprinted in my thoughts – why!
Loon danced holding his hard spurt, thinking of Sage naked, and decided then and there that he would not be that kind of shaman. He collapsed to his knees and fucked the dirt, spurted calling out at the sensation of coming, he bolts of pure pleasure streaming out of him onto the ground, and when he was done, still holding himself and pulsing, he scooped up the spurtmilk with some leaves and ate all of it.
In search of something different to read, a diversion from my more usual book selections, Shaman proved to be a very different experience. Although there were moments of disbelief or displeasure, to my delight (and surprise), overall, I actually enjoyed it.
As I See It 