Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country: Zan-Gah Series, Book 2 [Kindle Edition]

After rescuing his brother Dael, from the fierce Noi tribe that had captured and tortured him for two years, Zan Gah feels like he may finally be at peace with his life. He falls in love with the beautiful Lissa Na, a young Noi woman who helped in the rescue. But Dael is not the young carefree boy from their youth. He had changed, the torture had made him into a different man then he had been. There was anger and distrust, which haunted his very soul. Lissa Na continued to love him and was the only one that could soothe his soul. They married and when she died during childbirth, it brought out another side of Dael that was vindictive and spiteful. He hurt people and he hated his twin brother Zan Gah with a vengeance. He developed a group of followers who found his intensity and propensity interesting and exciting. He no long wanted to be a twin, so he shaved his head and tattooed his face to make himself different. His followers were right behind him, finding everything his did fascinating. This is a story of a damaged young man, his life and times, as well as his interactions with those who loved him.

In Zan Gah,and the beautiful country, Allan Richard Shickman has brought you a story of change and upheaval. What happens when an entire culture moves their clan and families? How do the changes manifest in the people of the time. For some the change is not so hard but for many the differences are brutal. He also takes you further into the lives of Zan Gah as well as his twin brother Dael.

Zan Gah had grown during his search for his brother. He was thrilled to have him back in his life, but it did not take him long to realize that Dael was not the brother he remembered. Zan Gah, is a cautious but enlightened man, he marries a young woman that many in his tribe would not consider. She is a hunter which is not acceptable in his clan and yet he admires her for her prowess. He continues to love his brother and try to help him to overcome his anger and rages, even though at times Dael is quite cruel. Zan never gives up on him, always remembering his brother when they were young; Dael was the funny one, the dreamer. He was well loved by all. Zan could not and would not give up on his ideal of who his brother was. When they find during a scouting, that the dreaded wasp hunters are gone, they group together to move their clan to the beautiful country. This is one of the few times that they will ever agree on anything.

Dael is a young man, embittered by the time and treatment that he received by the Noi tribe. They were cruel, subjecting him to all forms of punishment and torture, feeding him food not fit for animals. That he actually lived through this time for two years is a testament to his strength. His only relief during this time was when the young Lissa Na would stop by and speak with him. She found him fascinating, and grew to love him during this time. He relied on her soothing voice and her caring ways to help him make it though the worst of his torture. They were married once he was rescued and it appears that although he would occasionally have a flair up, life was good. When she died unexpectedly during child birth Dael became unhinged. He was everything and more of the very devil that the Noi had thought him when he was their slave.

This is a story of pain as well as hope. Understanding how Dael has come to be who he is does not make it any more palatable. He is an unpleasant young man and very easy to dislike. And yet there must be more to who he is as he has his own group of followers, willing to lay down their lives for him. He had a beautiful woman who loved him and left her own family for him. The story is intriguing but brutal. As it continues to develop you can only wonder and worry as war arises with the Noi. How will they cope and will things ever be as they were?
This is the second book in this series written with an eye to change. It must have been a brutal time and place and Allan Richard Shickman has spared no feeling with his descriptions of both the beauties and the atrocities. This book of the series is far more brutal and descriptive of the tribes and their clan wars. It brings to life the haunted realities of what captivity can create. I would recommend this book as it brings to a close ,the story of Zan Gah and his tribe. It is a wonderful thought provoking read and would make a good discussion for a reading group or book club.

How would you react if your kind, sweet brother turned into a bitter, vengeful enemy? In the first book of this series, Zan-Gah: A Prehistoric Adventure, Zan-Gah's twin brother, Dael, had been captured by the Wasp People, who abused him, and then sold as a slave to the Noi People, who also abused him, so Zan goes in search of his brother. Zan and Dael escape, along with Lissa-Na, a Noi woman who has nursed Dael, and Rydl, a Wasp boy whom Zan has befriended. At the end of the book, Dael marries Lissa-Na. As Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country begins, Lissa-Na dies in childbirth along with her and Dael's baby. Dael has healed from his abuse physically but not emotionally and becomes very spiteful and unpredictable.
In his hyperactivity, Dael asks Zan to go with him on a quest which the boys had talked about since childhood, finding the source of the Nobla River. Zan's wife Pax, Rydl, and a couple of Dael's friends accompany them. Dael's unspoken motive is to take vengeance on both the Wasp and Noi peoples. However, when they reach the land of the Wasp People, which Zan calls the Beautiful Country because it has plenty of water, vegetation, and animals, they find that a plague has killed all but one person. The group then decides to bring all the five clans of the Ba-Coro people to live in the Beautiful Country. What dangers and enemies will they face along the way? And how will the attitudes and actions of Dael, who now resents his brother's position of leadership, affect the Ba-Coro, especially when some of the Noi People want to settle nearby?
As I said in my review of Zan-Gah: A Prehistoric Adventure, which was a winner of the Eric Hoffer Notable Book Award, there are not a lot of books for young adults set in prehistoric times, at least that I have seen. I shall be honest and note that Zan-Gah and the Beautiful Country did not quite hold my attention as well as the first book, but it is still an interesting story that is told with a great deal of excitement and adventure. Again, because of the savage and somewhat barbaric scenario in which it takes place, it is not for small or sensitive children. However, the violence portrayed is not gratuitous or overly detailed. Teens can profit from reading about the development of Dael's problems, how Zan works to help his brother handle them, and their final resolution. A further sequel, Dael and the Painted People, is due out later this year.

Zan and Dael's story continues, as Dael reels after the death of his wife. He decides the tribe should move to take over the Wasp people's land, called the Beautiful Country. When the tribe arrives, the Wasp people have died out, but other troubles are to be found. The biggest trouble is Dael himself, and the frightening thing he has become.

Once again, I found myself quite enjoying the prehistoric story of Zan-Gah and his tribe. This time, the story was a little more fierce, and more intended for young adult readers on the older end of the spectrum. However, the book is far from graphic; I think it would particularly appeal to male readers. My only concern with that is there does seem to be a lot of disdain for women in the book, particularly by the character of Dael.

I like how the story really came to life as I read it. And the themes are so universal, love, jealousy, war, that at times, the reader forgets the prehistoric setting. I think this is a good thing, that it helps make the story more appealing. Even though it is a far different time and place than our own, we are able to really connect with Zan as a character, because his struggles are much like our own.

Overall, a good book for young adults and adults alike. I would love to hear more about Zan in the future.