What do you think?
Rate this book
The Hunter Returns
International best-selling science fiction author, David Drake, teams with Jim Kjelgaard, legendary creator of Big Red. The Return of a Masterpiece of Middle Grade Fiction!
OUTCASTS IN A LAND OF MONSTERS
Meet Hawk, formerly a hunter in a band of prehistoric nomads, now an outcast for breaking tribal law by daring to create a powerful new tool: the bow and arrow. Now the world is changing, the bison are disappearing, and the tribe has fallen into famine. Their only hope? Hawk and his new tools and hunting methods. But the old ways die hard, and Hawk must find a way to survive in a land of prehistoric predators, from dire wolves to beavers the size of bears, if he is to save his tribe, and show humanity the path away from Stone Age stagnation.
OUTCASTS IN A LAND OF MONSTERS
Meet Hawk, formerly a hunter in a band of prehistoric nomads, now an outcast for breaking tribal law by daring to create a powerful new tool: the bow and arrow. Now the world is changing, the bison are disappearing, and the tribe has fallen into famine. Their only hope? Hawk and his new tools and hunting methods. But the old ways die hard, and Hawk must find a way to survive in a land of prehistoric predators, from dire wolves to beavers the size of bears, if he is to save his tribe, and show humanity the path away from Stone Age stagnation.
275 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published February 1, 1991
8 people are currently reading
89 people want to read
About the author
Jim Kjelgaard
106 books163 followersan American author of young adult literature.
Born in New York City, New York, Jim Kjelgaard is the author of more than forty novels, the most famous of which is 1945's "Big Red." It sold 225,000 copies by 1956 and was made into a 1962 Walt Disney film with the same title, Big Red. His books were primarily about dogs and wild animals, often with animal protagonists and told from the animal's point of view.
Jim Kjelgaard committed suicide in 1959, after suffering for several years from chronic pain and depression.
- Wikipedia -
Born in New York City, New York, Jim Kjelgaard is the author of more than forty novels, the most famous of which is 1945's "Big Red." It sold 225,000 copies by 1956 and was made into a 1962 Walt Disney film with the same title, Big Red. His books were primarily about dogs and wild animals, often with animal protagonists and told from the animal's point of view.
Jim Kjelgaard committed suicide in 1959, after suffering for several years from chronic pain and depression.
- Wikipedia -
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
November 13, 2016
The Hunter Returns is one of the most obscure Drake titles; it's an expansion of a short novel from the 1950's by Jim Kjelgaard set in prehistoric times. It's a fun and fast-paced adventure and the perils include bear-sized beavers and other unusual beasties.
February 10, 2016
Clan of the Cave Bear starring a male. But I like that sort of thing. Other than the female central character not being rounded out very well. I loved the book. A quick read and worth the time.
June 21, 2018
I'd lost the title to this book which had been read to our class by a teacher in primary school. My sister found 'Fire Hunter' after a short description and I was able to buy and reread it. It is a portrayal of what could have been the experiences of a hunter gatherer and his tribe. From this, I moved on to Jean Aule's Clan of the Cave Bear series which was also excellent and more expansive of the way early man could have lived. If you like an easy read on early tool development and the discovery process, you'll enjoy this.
February 16, 2019
Stone Age Adventure
The chapters from the original book and the newly written chapters work together well in a Stone Age adventure story that never lets up.
The chapters from the original book and the newly written chapters work together well in a Stone Age adventure story that never lets up.
September 24, 2023
I thought this was a very good book. interesting twists and remember necessity is the mother of invention.
June 22, 2024
Survival of the Fittest:
Written in 1951 for young readers, Jim Kjelgaard's fast moving adventure novel "Fire Hunter" took those readers to a time and place far removed from their everyday lives. Thousands of years ago a tribe of Paleolithic Hunter-Gathers are on the hunt. Their quarry is a herd of long-horned bison positioned just right for a fire-drive over a nearby cliff. With this opening salvo Kjelgaard began a tale of men and women fighting for survival in a harsh, unforgiving world. "Fire Hunter" was an immediate hit with both teens and preteens of the 50's, and quite a few adults as well. The tribal spear-maker, Hawk, is banished for violating a traditional law and he, along with an injured woman, Willow* are cast out to die alone in the wilderness. As the rest of the tribe moves off, Hawk and Willow have little hope of survival. I originally discovered this book at our school library in the early 50's and was mesmerized by its tense, violent narrative. Since that time I have reread the story many times and each reading was as satisfying as before. Two of my favorite books from that time period were "Tarzan of the Apes" and "The White Panther" so this book, "Fire Hunter", fit right in with my needs. Now, flash forward 40 years. "Fire Hunter" had been out of print for several years and was increasingly hard to find in libraries and old book stores. Then, in 1990, noted science fiction writer David Drake took up the helm and expanded Kjelgaard's story line to include what happened to the other tribe members after they abandoned Hawk and Willow. The novel was renamed "The Hunter Returns". All of Kjelgaard's original text is intact and, with Drake's added narrative, the story is retold from two different points of view. A common complaint from some readers is that Hawk, like Ayala in "Clan of the Cave Bear", seemed to invent everything as the need arose. But careful readers will notice that's not entirely true. First of all there's the throwing-stick (Atlatl). Turns out Hawk did not invent that. Hawk's father got the Atlatl from an old spear-maker of another tribe and kept it's magic secret while he trained Hawk in the art of weapon making. He died before sharing that secret with his son. Although Hawk kept the "magic stick" after his fathers death he had no idea of it's potential use. Be sure to read Kjelgaard's "Foreword" where he explains how he had to "telescope time" in his story line and addresses the issue of Hawk's discoveries. Drake also notes in his "afterword" that some of the animals mentioned are native to North American while others are European species and suggest's the reader view this as an Alternative History novel. In any case, both authors tell the story in a plausible, believable way. Each author was and is a talented, accomplished writer, each with his own style and way of telling a story. Kjelgaard had several award winning books to his credit, most of them about animals or outdoorsmen, and was quite successful during his long career. Drake who is popular with both teenager and adult readers, also has many award winning books in his impressive lineup and did a masterful job of expanding "Fire Hunter" with added material. Combined "The Hunter Returns" moves seamlessly between the two authors for a stirring epic of early men and women and their struggle for survival. The original hardback edition of "Fire Hunter" had many fine illustrations by noted nature artist Ralph Ray Jr. Too bad the publishers of the Kindle edition, Baen Books, did not see fit to add Ray's art back into the story. The only illustration for the Kindle edition is the cover art by famous wildlife artist Charles R Knight. With or without illustrations this is still a good read. So don't be put off by whatever scientific errors you may or may not see, "The Hunter Returns" is exciting Pulp Fiction and should be read, and enjoyed as such. I had no downloading or formatting problems with this Kindle edition.
Last Ranger
(*) Willow was also the daughter of the clan’s chief Wolf.
Written in 1951 for young readers, Jim Kjelgaard's fast moving adventure novel "Fire Hunter" took those readers to a time and place far removed from their everyday lives. Thousands of years ago a tribe of Paleolithic Hunter-Gathers are on the hunt. Their quarry is a herd of long-horned bison positioned just right for a fire-drive over a nearby cliff. With this opening salvo Kjelgaard began a tale of men and women fighting for survival in a harsh, unforgiving world. "Fire Hunter" was an immediate hit with both teens and preteens of the 50's, and quite a few adults as well. The tribal spear-maker, Hawk, is banished for violating a traditional law and he, along with an injured woman, Willow* are cast out to die alone in the wilderness. As the rest of the tribe moves off, Hawk and Willow have little hope of survival. I originally discovered this book at our school library in the early 50's and was mesmerized by its tense, violent narrative. Since that time I have reread the story many times and each reading was as satisfying as before. Two of my favorite books from that time period were "Tarzan of the Apes" and "The White Panther" so this book, "Fire Hunter", fit right in with my needs. Now, flash forward 40 years. "Fire Hunter" had been out of print for several years and was increasingly hard to find in libraries and old book stores. Then, in 1990, noted science fiction writer David Drake took up the helm and expanded Kjelgaard's story line to include what happened to the other tribe members after they abandoned Hawk and Willow. The novel was renamed "The Hunter Returns". All of Kjelgaard's original text is intact and, with Drake's added narrative, the story is retold from two different points of view. A common complaint from some readers is that Hawk, like Ayala in "Clan of the Cave Bear", seemed to invent everything as the need arose. But careful readers will notice that's not entirely true. First of all there's the throwing-stick (Atlatl). Turns out Hawk did not invent that. Hawk's father got the Atlatl from an old spear-maker of another tribe and kept it's magic secret while he trained Hawk in the art of weapon making. He died before sharing that secret with his son. Although Hawk kept the "magic stick" after his fathers death he had no idea of it's potential use. Be sure to read Kjelgaard's "Foreword" where he explains how he had to "telescope time" in his story line and addresses the issue of Hawk's discoveries. Drake also notes in his "afterword" that some of the animals mentioned are native to North American while others are European species and suggest's the reader view this as an Alternative History novel. In any case, both authors tell the story in a plausible, believable way. Each author was and is a talented, accomplished writer, each with his own style and way of telling a story. Kjelgaard had several award winning books to his credit, most of them about animals or outdoorsmen, and was quite successful during his long career. Drake who is popular with both teenager and adult readers, also has many award winning books in his impressive lineup and did a masterful job of expanding "Fire Hunter" with added material. Combined "The Hunter Returns" moves seamlessly between the two authors for a stirring epic of early men and women and their struggle for survival. The original hardback edition of "Fire Hunter" had many fine illustrations by noted nature artist Ralph Ray Jr. Too bad the publishers of the Kindle edition, Baen Books, did not see fit to add Ray's art back into the story. The only illustration for the Kindle edition is the cover art by famous wildlife artist Charles R Knight. With or without illustrations this is still a good read. So don't be put off by whatever scientific errors you may or may not see, "The Hunter Returns" is exciting Pulp Fiction and should be read, and enjoyed as such. I had no downloading or formatting problems with this Kindle edition.
Last Ranger
(*) Willow was also the daughter of the clan’s chief Wolf.
July 18, 2013
The additions by Drake follow Hawk's tribe, and their troubles after abandoning Hawk and Willow. They're interspersed with the original chapters of Fire-Hunter, and neatly wrap up with the original ending of the book - so not much has been added or changed, and as other reviewers have pointed out, those sections are easy to ignore.
As pointed out in the afterword, the story is a mish-mash of details, some of them inconsistent, so Drake asks you to think of it as an alternate history novel. Of course he doesn't help matters, by adding in a character named Redhair - who presumably has red hair - which is completely out of keeping for the setting (ain't nobody descended from the Emerald Isle here). OTOH, Drake's done a fairly good job of emulating Kjelgaard's style of writing in his additions.
Problems with the base story are the rah-rah-rah meat-eating (all vegetables are horrible tasting), which is funny when you consider that most calories and the most dependable source of food for primitive diets come from women's vegetable/gathering work. Kjelgaard also never shows the men protecting the women while they gather - which is the whole reason that weapons and separated gender duties evolved. That evolution is why men became big-game hunters instead of opportunistic meat scavengers - give a man a tool and he can find uses for it.
On the other hand, the little plot leads which show directly how a primitive man might draw conclusions about how to improve his condition have always been nice.
As pointed out in the afterword, the story is a mish-mash of details, some of them inconsistent, so Drake asks you to think of it as an alternate history novel. Of course he doesn't help matters, by adding in a character named Redhair - who presumably has red hair - which is completely out of keeping for the setting (ain't nobody descended from the Emerald Isle here). OTOH, Drake's done a fairly good job of emulating Kjelgaard's style of writing in his additions.
Problems with the base story are the rah-rah-rah meat-eating (all vegetables are horrible tasting), which is funny when you consider that most calories and the most dependable source of food for primitive diets come from women's vegetable/gathering work. Kjelgaard also never shows the men protecting the women while they gather - which is the whole reason that weapons and separated gender duties evolved. That evolution is why men became big-game hunters instead of opportunistic meat scavengers - give a man a tool and he can find uses for it.
On the other hand, the little plot leads which show directly how a primitive man might draw conclusions about how to improve his condition have always been nice.
August 31, 2008
This books should "not" have David Drake as the sole author. The book is an expansion by Drake of a much earlier book called "The Fire Hunter" by Jim Kjelgaard. As near as I can figure, Drake added about 25,000 words. "The Fire Hunter," by itself, is a much, much better book. Read the original.
May 27, 2016
Fire-Hunter has been a favorite book of mine since I read it in fourth grade, and I was delighted to be able to find at least one reprint. Frankly, I could do without the additions by David Drake, but it's fairly simple to skip them and simply enjoy the original story.
March 22, 2012
Really enjoyed this book. Probably way out there and far fetched, but was really a good story and I just love reading about "cave people". Wish there were more of this type of book out there. I seem to have read them all - starting with clan of the cave bear and following.......
December 26, 2019
Captivating
Did not think I would find this appealing, but as a great fan of David Weber took it up...and did not put it down till it ended...far too soon.
A really great theory as to how cavemen and women progressed through trial and error. Kudos. To Drake and Kjelgaard.
Did not think I would find this appealing, but as a great fan of David Weber took it up...and did not put it down till it ended...far too soon.
A really great theory as to how cavemen and women progressed through trial and error. Kudos. To Drake and Kjelgaard.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews