CATEGORY

This is a spirited retelling of the true story of Manuel Cordova-Rios, who as a young man was abducted by a tribe of Indians while on a rubber-cutting expedition in the Amazon jungle in 1907. This first-person account relates Cordova-Rios' terrifying capture, his encounters with Shumu, the tribal chief, and his life among the Huni Kui, an isolated tribe possessing sophisticated knowledge of the curative powers of jungle plants and the habits and natures of the many animals that lived with them in the lush tropical jungle. Under Shumu's tutelage, Cordova-Rios underwent a shamanic initiation, participating in dreaming sessions induced by the psychotropic plant ayahuasca. In these group trances, the young Peruvian man received from the chief and other members of the Huni Kui their astounding store of knowledge and tribal lore of the jungle environment. Cordova succeeded him as the tribe's chief on Shumu's death. After living among the Huni Kui for several years, Cordova-Rios eventually returned to his life in the outside world.

Reading Level: Young Adult