Synopses & Reviews
Praise for THE AIRMEN AND THE HEADHUNTERS:
"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." -- James Bradley, author of Flags of Our Fathers and Flyboys
"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 harm's way." --James D. Hornfischer, author of Ship of Ghosts: The Story of the USS Houston, FDR's Legendary Lost Cruiser, and the Epic Saga of Her Survivors
"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." --Alex Kershaw, author of The Few: The American "Knights of the Air" Who Risked Everything to Fight in the Battle of Britain
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." Alex Kershaw, author of THE FEW
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."(Alex Kershaw, author of THE FEW)
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 harm's way." James Hornfischer, author of SHIP OF GHOSTS
Review
"Heimann brings a visceral urgency to one of WWII's most unlikely tales. Along the way, she makes us like the airmen rethink our definitions of civilized and savage." Entertainment Weekly
Review
"Heimann rivets one's 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
"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." James Bradley, author of FLYBOYS
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." Kirkus Reviews
Review
PRAISE FOR THE AIRMEN AND THE HEADHUNTERS and#160;"With her title alone . . . Heimann rivets oneand#8217;s attention."and#151;The Washington Post Book Worldand#160;"Heimann brings a visceral urgency to one of WWII's most unlikely tales . . . Along the way, she makes usand#151;like the airmenand#151;rethink our definitions of civilized and savage."and#151;Entertainment Weekly
Synopsis
November 1944: Their B-24 bomber shot down on what should have been an easy mission off the Borneo coast, a scattered crew of Army airmen cut themselves loose from their parachutesand#151;only to be met by loincloth-wearing natives silently materializing out of the mountainous 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 in a desperate game of hide-and-seek?
A cinematic survival story featuring 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 also a gripping tale of wartime heroism unlike any other you have read.
About the Author
JUDITH 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.
Table of Contents
ContentsPrefaceand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;1
ONE: A B-24 Over Borneoand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;3
TWO: Into the Jungleand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;21
THREE: The D.O.and#8217;s Dilemmaand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;35
FOUR: and#147;Good-bye, Misterand#8221;and#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;57
FIVE: Another Part of the Forestand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;71
SIX: Becoming Lun Dayehand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;81
SEVEN: A Letter from the Japaneseand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;95EIGHT: 10pt; FONT-FAMILY: Times" Polecat Gulchand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;109
NINE: The Pangeran Forces the Paceand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;131
TEN: The D.O. Declares Warand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;147
ELEVEN: The Navy Crashes Inand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;165
TWELVE: Help from on Highand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;189
THIRTEEN: SEMUT Finds Work for the Yanksand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;205
FOURTEEN: A Way Outand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;225
FIFTEEN: The Allies Arriveand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;243
and#160;
Acknowledgmentsand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;263
Glossaryand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;267
A Note on Sourcesand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;273
Indexand#160;and#160;*and#160;and#160;281