Forbidden to make images, fourteen-year-old Tao, a boy with the bad foot, yearns to be a cave painter, recording the figures of the rhinos, bison, and other animals of his prehistoric times.

This short book follows Tao, the stone age boy with a limp who bucks tradition by daring to wish to be a cave painter (at which he has a real gift) rather than a hunter (at which he is very poor, until he enlists the help of a wolf-dog he befriends - and that just causes more problems).

The book is an enchanting look at the ancient european cave painting hunter-gatherers of some 18,000 years ago. But it is also a book that speaks to anyone anywhere. Sometimes "this is the way it has always been" is just not a good enough answer for doing something the same way now, and Tao learns that those who dare to dream may sometimes be rewarded.

This is a children's book. It is short and sweet and could be read by any child from the age of about 7 up. It lacks the tension of a good young adult title, so teens will perhaps stay away from this book, but it was still an enjoyable read. ( )

#112, 2006

Enjoyed this book, which my son and I read together (I read it aloud). It’s a story about a young boy who wants more than anything to be a cave painter, but according to the traditions and taboos of his clan, someone of his “station of birth” could never do this highly-honoured activity. He decides to pursue his dream, if only in private, until he makes a couple of friends who will help him go farther than he ever thought was possible. I enjoyed the story and the setting – it’s kinda fun to read a book which features woolly mammoths. ( )