Mastodonia [Hardcover]

Clifford D. Simak (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 251 pages
• Publisher: Ballantine Books; 1st edition (March 1, 1978)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345275004
• ISBN-13: 978-0345275004
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,161,677 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A great read for all ages, March 28, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Mastodonia (Hardcover)

I got this book at a library sale at the age of 10 and I read it right away. I loved every minute of it and I have reread it several times in the past 9 years. This has time travel, dinosaurs, aliens, telepathic dogs, and ambitious businessmen and governments. It is a little dated, but definitely still relevant.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun pulp, July 28, 2010

By 

Brian K Birge III - See all my reviews

This review is from: Mastodonia (Mass Market Paperback)

Not much to add to the other reviews. I've read this book about 4 times over the last 20 years, I still enjoy it. The fun part for me is the snappy 30's style dialogue set in the 70's and the way the main protagonist brings all his childhood friends into the scheme. The backwoods setting is well done though it seems anachronistic these days, I'm old enough to remember actual places like this. The time travel trips are exciting and in one case chilling as we only see the results. Several characters could have used a lot more fleshing out but I do like that the alien mostly remains a mystery character, and the several open ended threads that never get resolved are a nice touch. I also like how there is not a stereotypical 'second lead' that gets killed for some plot device. A nice example of 60's style sci-fi in a non 60's setting.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Home is where the wooly mammoth grazes, November 22, 2005

By 

Daniel Leboeuf "dan1066" (LA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mastodonia (Mass Market Paperback)

This is a rather stunning work. Simak opens with anecdotes about a time traveling dog named Bowser and ends with a satisfying novel about time travel. Simak grounds his SF in characters and localities that are familiar and somewhat nostalgic--cabins in the woods, life in the country.

Asa Steele just wants to live on the farm but discovers a way to travel to other time periods. First item? Allowing some big game safari hunters go after dinosaurs, of course; then finding a time niche between glacial periods to settle in a nice cozy cottage ("Mastodonia") to avoid U.S. taxes.

Simak does produce some absolutely wretched dialogue and uses stereotypes rather than characters, but his vision and plotting make up for these shortcomings to yield one of the best time travel stories I have ever read. Find a used paperback and enjoy this one. You won't regret the purchase.