This is the story of three
anthropologists studying the tribes of New Guinea in the 1930s. Two of the anthropologists are a married
couple, two very different people who seem to have a great ability to
understand native peoples but not each other.
The third is an anthropologist who put rocks in his pockets and walked
in to the river a few days before the couple arrived. The newcomers have given him reason to live,
especially Nell, who he is captivated with at their first meeting. The three find themselves among the Tam, a
tribe with very interesting views about gender roles when compared to life in the
“civilized” world.
This book is getting a lot of buzz
for the similarities between Nell and Margaret Mead, who was apparently a
famous anthropologist. I am a little embarrassed
that I didn’t know who she was because most reviewers write their reviews in
such a matter of fact style that assumes everyone knows who she was. (After talking to a few colleagues I feel
much better, they didn’t know who she was either!) The good thing is that this book made me want
to find out more about her to see the similarities between fiction and reality.
A slim book with a complete story that makes
you think and question as you go along.
