The Forest People

This book really helps in understanding how our world has changed and what it was like before we were all rootless and overwhelmed by technology. The place and the people shown in it are lovely, and it was written by an expert who had spent 3 years living with the baMbouti, the group of Pygmies the book is about. Their culture is contrasted with that of a group of Bantu Africans who live nearby and interact frequently with the "forest people."The first part of the book is interesting but a little slow going. It gives the reader the basics needed to understand this culture. Then the book becomes more detailed in portraying individuals, day-to-day life, important cultural events, and the contrast with the Bantu. None of this book is written like a textbook.Although it is factual and objective, it became for me and the author a--for lack of a better word--spiritual experience: the beauty of the still natural forest, wildlife, and people.I strongly suggest reading it and sticking with it to the end. It saddens me to see how our world has changed, and is changing still.

Good book - purchased it for a gift, as I had read this book before.This book is an intimate look into the lives of the pygmies of the Belgian Congo - now a republic in Africa. One cannot read this book without living in the book with the pygmy people himself or herself. Their way of life was different from our American, modern lives, but it had its own beauty and lively personalities. I read this with an open mind and respect for the societies and life ways that differ from mine. These people generally "talked their differences to death," rather than fight with each other, although occasional fights did occur. Basically, their society was simple but not lacking of sensitivity and rules. The forest was actually their religion. They had great respect for the flora and fauna and never mistreated the environment as our society does today. As I became acquainted with the characters and their families and marriages, I came to love this book and its way of life. A way of life no longer the same in that area of Africa.

This is a fantastic book, even if you aren't into anthropology. It is a mesmerizing story of one man's experience living among a very isolated, non-modernized tribe of Pygmies. Gives you an interesting perspective on more "naturally living" humans as well as our own culture/modern life at the same time. I read this many years ago, but it is one of the few books I remember clearly and which I refer to often in more existential type conversations. I recently purchased it for my 15 year old daughter to read for a school project and she loves it.

Turnbull's account of his time with the pygmies is an incredible work of anthropology and humanity. His observations are empathetic, not patronizing. His takeaways are nuanced, not dismissive. But there is one aspect of his study that falls far short of completion: Turnbull never tells us whether or not the pygmies practice circumcision. Surely he KNOWS. After 3 years of living with the pygmies, he's seen enough to ascertain whether removal of the foreskin is a common practice among the forest people. The fact that he doesn't share this information with his readers is curious. What is Turnbull hiding? Why wouldn't he share ALL of his lessons, rather than just the ones that occur above the belt? The circumcision silence could be termed as Tunbull's "Bull Turn," and indeed, it is one for which we are all the worse off. 4 stars.

This book draws you it and brings you along for such a beautiful journey. The forest people are truly something special. Highly suggest!

I enjoyed using this electronic copy in my anthropology class. Taking my books all on a single tablet was way easier than toting around a 50lb backpack of books. That all being was it is... knowing what I know now about using digital books in the classroom.. I'd choose a physical book. To each their own.

I bought this book for an Intro to Anthropology class.The first 1/3 of the book is full of background, learning names and try to get a grasp of the culture. Past this point, you start to see the characters personalities shine and you get a good feel for what it would have been like to live as one with the mbuti tribe at the time when this book was written!This is a truly fascinating read and one that I would recommend to anyone even remotely interested in Anthropology or worldly cultures.

The item was exalted and sterling. Delivery was champion. Remarkably appealing packaging. Recommended.

The book is really interesting despite the long time past after its writing.Good value indeed!------ ----- --- -

Excellent book, very well written, with vivid accounts about the lives of the BaMbuti pygmies. This book tells us episodes of the lives of the people, their disputes, happiness and their love for the forest. It also compares the ways of life of the hunter-gatherer pygmies and the settled villagers, with whom they trade and participate in some rituals. The pygmies are far less superstitious than the villagers, they don't believe in witchcraft or that the forest is a place of evil spirits. To them, the forest is good, and, if anything bad happens, their explanation is that the forest is asleep, and they sing for it, to wake it up. The author made a brilliant job describing the lives of this forest people, making the reader feel fascinated, as if he was really there.

Looked for this for ages. Out of print. The digital version is fine.

I was mightily impressed by Turnbull's study. This kind of research is difficult, both physically and methodologically. That Turnbull should attempt it and return with such a lyrical, living account of his time in the forest is something that we should be very grateful for.Another reviewer spends almost their entire review discussing the methodological and other flaws in this study. That reviewer makes some good points but their criticisms are vastly overdone. The positives of Turnbull's book are so much greater than its weaknesses. Turnbull was writing in the 1950s, when some topics were more difficult to write about, when knowledge of hunter-gather cultures was much less than now and when the methodology for such studies was still developing. For all the gaps, the main thing that strikes one is how lucky we are that it was Colin Turnbull who conducted such a study and recorded so much detail of daily life. One can easily imagine many other researchers making a much poorer fist of it.Indeed, the level of detail about daily life - so criticised by the review mentioned above - is part of the central point of the book. The rows and disagreements and how they are resolved are fascinating in themselves. One can learn much from even apparently insignificant detail if one approaches it with an open and enquiring mind. There is so much more to the book than daily conversations and disputes, though. Our own understanding of gender relations, politics, economics, religion, child-rearing, health and many other topics are enriched by considering how the forest people deal with these matters. Importantly, Turnbull resists theorising and allows the reader the privilege of stepping back and thinking independently about what is going on. It therefore helps if you have read other material related to this topic. However, even the lay reader with little related knowledge will gain much from reading this book.

Lovely book