Mammut is the fossilised remains of a 13,354-year-old extinct American mammoth (Mammut americanum). It is 2007 and Mammut is in a box at a natural history auction in New York. In the room is another fossil, T.bat. or Tyrannosaurus bataar. T.bat is a lot older but Mammut has been above ground much longer, having been sold and stolen for hundreds of years.

As these two fossils wait for the following day when they will be auctioned off to the highest bidders, Mammut begins to tell the story of his life to T.bat. He remembers his time when he roamed the Earth above ground, but also the time after he was brought above ground where he was traded by the ‘hominids’.

As Mammut shares his tale they are joined by Paleo (a prehistoric penguin), the severed hand of Egyptian Pharaoh Hatshepsut’s mummy, and a prehistoric pterodactyl. All join in as he continues his story, most interrupting, but a lot of it wry and at times hilarious.

This book is so bizarrely good. There are times when a wry smile would cross my face and others where I would simply burst out laughing. But there is more to this book than fun. Mammoth is absurd, witty, very thoughtful, curious and simply fun. Flynn’s wry wit shines through and as you read you can almost feel the pleasure he must have felt when writing the clever lines these characters spruik. Read it. It’s an experience you’ll want to talk about.

Reviewed by Alice Wilson