I am familiar with the Bahasa Indonesa, and having spent a week with the Dayaks in Central Kalimantan, it has now become clear to me what the 'goings on' were about and now have a lot more meaning after reading this book. Thank you so much for this book which came mysteriously to me in the later years of my life to enjoy and reminisce.

Everyone has bedtime stories. Even the headhunting Sea Dyaks of Sarawak, Borneo. I read this book with little to no knowledge of the Sea Dyak culture and fell in love with their fierce loyalty, their emphasis on the importance of family, and their unique ways of looking at life. It's honestly a shame that Western culture continues to overshadow the fantastic myths of places like Borneo, and what an incredible boon that Theresa Fuller has put pen to paper to try to preserve these stories. Although lightly dramatized, in order to bring life to these myths, Fuller treats each story with care and precision to make sure nothing is lost. She does an incredible job in explaining unfamiliar term, and in describing the landscapes and jungles the Sea Dyaks called home. To reduce them down simply to headhunters is a discredit to the complexity of their culture, and last 60 or so pages of the book is a comprehensive overview of the Sea Dyak way of life, in addition to their myths. Trickster mousedeer, omen-bearing birds, were-tigers and gods abound in this book. And if lines like “I will bring you a human head as a token, my love” don't catch your attention, then I don't know what will. Fuller's introduction warns that this book is not for the squeamish, and it's not. The lessons passed on are just as harsh (and harsher!) as in any Brothers Grimm story, but don't let that stop you from enjoying The Girl Sudan painting Like a Gold Ring.

I received an ARC copy of this book, and I was very happy about it. I have read folktales from Borneo before, and they revealed a fascinating world, so I was eager to read more. This book did not disappoint. There are some long, gorgeous tales in it, interspersed with trickster stories and shorter legends. They are rich in cultural detail and eloquently written. See blog for the details: http://multicoloreddiary.blogspot.com...