Though his father, Bujang, loves him, Nuing runs away from home because the people of the longhouse reject him. Following a failed war expedition, Bunsu Jugam, the spirit of the youngest sun bear, rescues Nuing and brings him into the invisible world where he tells him that Bujang has been kidnapped by K’lansat demons. The python spirit of his father’s trophy head spits on Nuing and causes his skin to burn and swell until he looks like a deformed rhinocerous. He manages to rescue his father and on their return they are attacked by four men. Bujang kills one, and Nuing three. When the thick skin finally comes off and the people learns that their hero is Nuing, they grudgingly accepts him back, believing that the curse of his birth is nullified by the power of the three heads he took. Iban Journey is volume two in this unique series of fantasy fiction — that includes Iban Dream — in which author Golda Mowe, herself an Iban from Borneo, uses real beliefs, taboos and terminology of the Iban (a longhouse-dwelling indigenous group of people from Borneo who, until very recently, were renowned for practising headhunting) to weave epic tales of good versus evil.

Orphaned as a young boy in the rainforests of Borneo, Bujang is brought up by a family of orangutans, but his adult future has already been decided for him by Sengalang Burong, the Iban warpath god. On reaching adulthood, Bujang must leave his ape family and serve the warpath god as a warrior and a headhunter. Having survived his first assignment — to kill an ill-tempered demon in the form of a ferocious wild boar — subsequent adventures see Bujang converse with gods, shamans, animal spirits and with the nomadic people of Borneo as he battles evil spirits and demons to preserve the safety of those he holds dear to him. But Bujang’s greatest test is still to come and he must rally a large headhunting expedition to free his captured wife and those of his fellow villagers. In this unique work of fantasy fiction, author Golda Mowe — herself an Iban from Borneo — uses real beliefs, taboos and terminology of the Iban (a longhouse-dwelling indigenous group of people from Borneo who, until very recently, were renowned for practising headhunting) to weave an epic tale of good versus evil.

Twenty-year-old Ratai is proud and strong for she is the eldest child of Nuing, the Iban warrior who went to the invisible world and returned alive, and the granddaughter of Bujang Maias, the great headhunter who was raised by apes. Despite her pedigree, however, she is frustrated and confused. Although a more successful hunter than the men her age she has still not managed to master the weave necessary to prove her feminine skills and win a man’s heart. After a bad omen befalls her longhouse, Ratai feels compelled to join a war party to take enemy heads and save her people. The longhouse is against her joining the headhunting expedition but Ratai is stubborn because she has been adopted by Kumang, the goddess of the weave and the patroness of headhunters. Ratai must overcome deadly tasks, both in the forests of Borneo and in the Iban dream world, and she must find a balance between her desire to be the perfect Iban woman and her lust for adventure. Iban Woman is the third in the Iban Dream series of standalone novels by Golda Mowe, the most prolific Iban novelist in English of her generation and a descendant of the erstwhile headhunters of Borneo. In this her latest book, readers are once again immersed in Iban culture, learning the art of the weave, how to interpret omens in nature and how to hunt for animals … and human heads.

This is the eighth volume in the Comparative Austronesian series. The papers in this volume examine metaphors of path and journey among specific Austronesian societies located on islands from Taiwan to Timor and from Madagascar to Micronesia. These diverse local expressions define common cultural conceptions found throughout the Austronesian-speaking world.

Borneo's biodiversity is among the richest in the world.The first guide to focus on Malaysian Borneo and Brunei, this book gives full details on where and how to see the island's colourful flora and fauna. Tropical rainforest and rivers cover over 70% ofMalaysian Borneo, and this lush habitat is home to hundreds of unique species, from the jelly green snake and bearded pig to the proboscis monkey. Trek through one of the region's national parks or catch a glimpse of an orang-utan. Traditional rural lifestyles,tribal influences and ethnic variety also offer the visitor a rewarding cultural experience; take part in island festivities, spend the night in a longhouse or shop in the bustling markets. Borneo can provide for adventure travellers, divers and even sunbathers.Over 27,000 UK visitors travelled to Borneo in 2007, up 10% on the previous year.