Shaman by Kim Stanley Robinson

Kim Stanley Robinson, the New York Times bestselling author of science fiction masterworks such as the Mars trilogy and 2312, has, on many occasions, imagined our future. Now, in SHAMAN, he brings our past to life as never before.
There is Thorn, a shaman himself. He lives to pass down his wisdom and his stories -- to teach those who would follow in his footsteps.
There is Heather, the healer who, in many ways, holds the clan together.
There is Elga, an outsider and the bringer of change.
And then there is Loon, the next shaman, who is determined to find his own path. But in a world so treacherous, that journey is never simple -- and where it may lead is never certain.
SHAMAN is a powerful, thrilling and heartbreaking story of one young man's journey into adulthood -- and an awe-inspiring vision of how we lived thirty thousand years ago.

From Booklist
Starred Review Shaman follows Loon from his experience on a late-winter shaman's journey of skill and endurance to his true adulthood. The wander that begins the story is the beginning of his passage into manhood, and a shaman's trial. Loon doesn't want to be a shaman, at least not in the way his tribe's shaman is, with magic and old stories. He does like the painting. In this prehistoric world, life is genuinely focused on survival, and on the flow of seasons—and so there is often a sense of fear, but there's plenty of time for humor as well. The novel does generally succeed in its ambitious scope. It is more uneven when it comes to the viewpoint character—Loon is, after all, a 14-year-old boy. It is occasionally tiresome to be subjected to the inner workings of a fictional teenage boy, but aside from that, this novel bears the markings of Robinson's consummate skill with a sort of anthropological fiction. Robinson's prose is transparent, capable of sustaining massive plots, and a certain amount of troublesome characterization can be forgiven in the face of spectacular world building. --Regina Schroeder

Review
"Robinson's expert world building and lyrical prose offer Jack London-esque pleasures as they depict the stark beauties of the icy landscape - it's desolation, dangers and the desperate choices it forces people to make when pushed to the edge of existence. Richly detailed." (Kirkus)
"This novel bears the markings of Robinson's consummate skill with a sort of anthropological fiction...Spectacular world building." (Booklist)
"A thrilling journey through an age of ice and stone - one of Kim Stanley Robinson's best!" (Greg Bear)
"This book proves once again that Robinson's fascination with the human condition and mankind's journey transcends easy genre labels...Despite all his previous accolades, this may be Robinson's best work to date, focused so sharply as it is on the simplest way of being human." (Library Journal)
"A seriously composed and compelling novel about prehistoric life...some of the most intelligent entertainment you can find." (NPR Books)
"The novel is an amazing piece of recreation, vividly evoking the deprivations, animalistic beliefs and day-to-day struggles of a primitive tribe." (Financial Times (UK))