Of Canoes and Crocodiles : Paddling the Sepik in Papua New Guinea (Wayfarer)

Robinson-Smith, Tony

University of Alberta Press（2024/06発売）

University of Alberta Press（2024/06発売）

• 製本 Paperback:紙装版/ペーパーバック版／ページ数 240 p.
• 言語 ENG
• 商品コード 9781772127348
• DDC分類 919.53045

Full Description

Of Canoes and Crocodiles is a story of adventure in the remote and threatened landscapes of Papua New Guinea. In 2018, Tony Robinson-Smith and his wife Nadya Ladouceur bought dugout canoes and paddled down the Sepik, the country's longest river. Traveling with local guides and staying in their villages, Tony and Nadya ate smoked piranha and sago pancakes, heard tales of river gods and sorcerers, marvelled at rainbow bee-eaters and cat-size flying foxes, sank in a tropical storm, got lost in mosquito-infested swamplands, and hid from pirates in mangroves near the sea. As the narrative follows the bends of the river, Robinson-Smith incorporates into its flow descriptions of crocodile initiation rites, village "big men," the barter system, raskolism, and sing-sings. He reflects on clan loyalty, colonization, Christian missionaries, bride price, the environmental impacts of foreign logging and mining, and the joys and fears of following the current down a long, snaky jungle river in a volatile Melanesian country.

Contents

[Draft]
Chapter 1: Into the Jungle
Chapter 2: A Wild Place
Chapter 3: Upper Sepik
Chapter 4: Village Big Men
Chapter 5: "Canada tent nogut!"
Chapter 6: Yanak the Sorcerer
Chapter 7: Retreat from the River
Chapter 8: Crocodile Men
Chapter 9: Sunk
Chapter 10: Naudumba
Chapter 11: To the Sea
Chapter 12: Views from Above
Further Reading
Glossary