Jean Auel is an American author best known for her Earth's Children series of novels, which focus on prehistoric fiction. Her first novel, 'The CLAN of the Cave Bear', was published in 1980 and follows the story of a young girl named Ayla who is adopted by a Neanderthal CLAN. The novel was followed by five sequels, including 'The Valley of Horses', 'The Mammoth Hunters', 'The Plains of Passage', 'The Shelters of Stone' and 'The Land of Painted Caves'. In addition to Ayla, other characters featured in the series include NORMA, Nome, Luc and Genet.