|
|
|
|
||
|
HELP | |
|
  $14.95 List price:
Used Hardcover
Ships in 1 to 3 days
More copies of this ISBN:This title in other formats:The Airmen and the Headhunters: A True Story of Lost Soldiers, Heroic Tribesmen and the Unlikeliest Rescue of World War IIby Judith M Heimann
Synopses & ReviewsPublisher Comments:N ovember 1944: Army airmen set out in a B-24 bomber on what should have been an easy mission off the Borneo coast. Instead they found themselves unexpectedly facing a Japanese fleetand were shot down. When they cut themselves loose from their parachutes, they were scattered across the islands mountainous interior. Then a group of loincloth-wearing natives silently materialized out of the jungle. Would these Dayak tribesmen turn the starving airmen over to the hostile Japanese occupiers? Or would the Dayaks risk vicious reprisals to get the airmen safely home? The tribal leaders unprecedented decision led to a desperate game of hide-and-seek, and, ultimately, the return of a long-renounced ritual: head-hunting. A cinematic survival story that features a bamboo airstrip built on a rice paddy, a mad British major, and a blowpipe-wielding army that helped destroy one of the last Japanese strongholds, The Airmen and the Headhunters is a gripping, you-are-there journey into the remote world and forgotten heroism of the Dayaks. Review:"Using detailed research and new interviews with all the surviving players, including the tribal Dayaks of Southeast Asia, diplomat and author Heimann (The Most Offending Soul Alive) presents the story of two B-24 crews, one U.S. Army Air Corps and one U.S. Navy, shot down over Borneo in November 1944 and January 1945, respectively. With the help of a local District Official and Lun Dayeh tribesmen, the airmen survived several months in uncharted interior jungles, avoiding capture by occupying Japanese forces. The book gives great insight into the Lun Dayeh, a thriving culture that uses few tools and almost no knowledge of modern machinery, best known for their practice of headhunting. Surprisingly enough, they prove kind, welcoming and very generous with what provisions they have; meanwhile, the Japanese plunder native resources and subject opposition to torture and worse, proving the terms 'savage' and 'civilized' to be quite subjective. A good read for WWII history buffs, Heimann's volume also contains enough material on the culture of Southeast Asian tribes to please any armchair anthropologist." Publishers Weekly (Copyright Reed Business Information, Inc.) Review:"The Airmen and the Headhunters is an engaging and unique tale of courage and rescue. Heimann has created a nuanced portrait of Borneo and a fascinating group of truly heroic tribesmen." Review:"At first the downed Flyboys thought their hosts to be savage. But by the end of their remarkable journey, the Americans learned just how civilized headhunters can be. Judith Heimann has uncovered a dramatic, touchingly human tale in the jungle forests of Borneo." Review:"Sixty years later, World War II is still giving up its secrets. The Airmen and the Headhunters recovers a forgotten tale from the far Pacific that should interest anyone who cares about the gallantry of our aviators who flew into harms way." Review:"Heimann brings a visceral urgency to one of WWIIs most unlikely tales. Along the way, she makes us like the airmen rethink our definitions of civilized and savage." Review:"Heimann rivets ones attention." (Washington Post Book World)Review:PRAISE FOR THE MOST OFFENDING SOUL ALIVE "Lively and scrupulously researched." --The New Yorker "Explorer, museum curator, guerilla fighter, pioneer sociologist, documentary filmmaker, anthropologist--Tom Harrisson was all these things. He was also arrogant, choleric, swashbuckling, often drunk, and nearly always deliberately outrageous. In spite of these contradictions, he became a key figure in every enterprise he undertook . . . A brilliant and insightful biography." --David Attenborough Review:"[F]ew writers could have tracked down this captivating story. [Heimann] paints a vivid picture of the indigenous people who comfortably inhabited the dense jungle and carried on a flourishing trade with the coast... A fascinating anthropology lesson, delivered with the bonus of a dramatic adventure and a happy ending." Review:"Heimann rivets ones attention." About the AuthorJUDITH M. HEIMANN is a career diplomat and the author of The Most Offending Soul Alive. She spent seven years living in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines, and speaks Indonesian. She traveled to three continents and interviewed all the surviving Dayaks and airmen in her research for this book. She lives in Washington, D.C., and Brussels. What Our Readers Are SayingBe the first to add a comment for a chance to win!Product Details
Other books you might like
Related Aisles
| |||||||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||||||
Don't Miss
