Short story about prehistoric humans using tech to escape a predator

January 24, 2018 4:41 AM

At a con this weekend, one of the authors described a short story she once read, but couldn't remember the author or title, but now I want to read it. Synopsis: two prehistoric humans are attempting to escape a predator. One is injured, but the other is helping their escape, although it slows them down. Death begins to seem certain when they find a stick and know that they have found their salvation; instead of using the stick as a weapon, they use it as a crutch and get away. Name this story, please!
posted by palindromic to Writing & Language (1 answer total)

This reminds me a bit of Fire-Hunter by Jim Kjelgaard. Two Paleolithic people are exiled by their clan for different reasons. The woman is injured but they team up to pool their skills and end up thriving. The story compresses several technological breakthroughs and shows how they may have been discovered. I first read it in elementary school but found it again as an adult and I think it holds up well. My library system has one on the shelf.
posted by Botanizer at 3:18 PM on January 24, 2018