Review of The Strange Land

[Tina Thomssen]

I wish I had read the first book before reading the sample for this one so that I could hopefully understand more of what is going on. I want to learn more about Ikash, Ki-Ki, and their visions. I spotted some errors in the sample. They were all words that needed spaces between them.

[mrlefty0706]

"The Strange Land" by Jennifer Mugrage is a sequel to the Long Guest. This is a historical novel that takes place in 10,000 BC and it is centered around a people always referred to as ‘The People’. Archeologists have found evidence that around 10,000 BC humans migrated from Asia to North America. They are a society set at the beginning of time, after the tower of Babel, when the people of the world spoke many different languages. This was God’s punishment for the people that built the tower of Babel with the goal of reaching Heaven by climbing the tower. Ikash, the main character, lives with his family and he was born after the tower of Babel and he wandered around with the people which must have been quite a conundrum since the language differences would have caused many communication issues. His father Endu was very abusive but being the brother of the chief so most people were not aware of the abuse. His grandmother Zillah tried to temporarily solve the abuse issue by separating his mother Sari from Endu. Ikash decides that he needs to look for more of a future. His cousin Ki-Ki is the village Shaman so Ikash asks Ki-Ki if he could see a vision. During the ceremony when he was initiated into manhood, he sees a vision that changes the course of his life. Ikash decides that he wants to become a Shaman and Ki-Ki agrees to train him. The sample provided detailed descriptions of the characters and how they interacted with one another. The great white serpent tried to convince Ki-Ki to worship him but Ki-Ki refused and the snake told him they would meet again.

[Ohanele Chinonyerem]

I would like to read "The Strange Land" by Jennifer Mugrage because Ikash’s story seems emotional, and living with an abusive dad would be difficult.

[Janet Kimetto]

I sampled the book and enjoyed meeting Ikash (and Sha), Ki-ki, and their grandmother, Zillah, in the first chapter. I'm curious about the secrets of the spirit world, about what Ikash will find when his older shaman cousin, Ki-ki, finally agrees to teach him to become a shaman. Thanks for the review!