Of magical stones, flying foxes and doomed love

This book covers the entire gamut of Wancho mythology, historical and cultural memory, and folktales, as promised in the title.

- Priyanka Sarkar

This book covers the entire gamut of Wancho mythology, historical and cultural memory, and folktales, as promised in the title. The "our" in the subtitle indicates that both writers, Tara Douglas and Jatwang Wangsa, see themselves as belonging to the Wancho tribe.

Douglas's introduction makes for an academic, anthropological and informative read on the Wanchos, complete with a list of references.

Divided into eight sections including ones titled Mythological Stories and Just-So Stories, Stories of Migration and War, Of Villages and their Relationships, Doomed Love Stories, Stories of Hunting and Acts of Bravery, and Mankind and the Animal World, this volume has beautiful illustrations and QR codes linked to Wancho songs, which add to the reading experience.

Some of the illustrations, including the captivating one before The Story of Flying Fox (Loakla), are by Douglas. In a nice touch, every story lists the names of the storytellers and the village where it originated.

The longest stories are in the migration section, with one running into 12 pages while there are some just one page long.

Part creation-myth, part oral history and part moral lesson, these narratives reveal the Wancho thought and value system.