The Last of the Tribe 1st (first) edition Text Only

by Monte Reel

Throughout the centuries, the Amazon has yielded many of its secrets, but it still holds a few great mysteries. In 1996 experts got their first glimpse of a lone Indian, a tribe of one, hidden in the forests of southwestern Brazil. Previously uncontacted tribes are extremely rare, but a one-man tribe was unprecedented. And like all of the isolated tribes in the Amazonian frontier, he was in danger.Resentment of Indians can run high among settlers, and the consequences can be fatal. The discovery of the Indian prevented local ranchers from seizing his land, and led a small group of men who believed that he was the last of a murdered tribe to dedicate themselves to protecting him. These men worked for the government, overseeing indigenous interests in an odd job that was part Indiana Jones, part social worker, and were among the most experienced adventurers in the Amazon. They were a motley crew that included a rebel who spent more than a decade living with a tribe, a young man who left home to work in the forest at age fourteen, and an old-school sertanista with a collection of tall tales amassed over five decades of jungle exploration.Their quest would prove far more difficult than any of them could imagine. Over the course of a decade, the struggle to save the Indian and his land would pit them against businessmen, politicians, and even the Indian himself, a man resolved to keep the outside world at bay at any cost. It would take them into the furthest reaches of the forest and to the halls of Brazil’s Congress, threatening their jobs and even their lives. Ensuring the future of the Indian and his land would lead straight to the heart of the conflict over the Amazon itself.A heart-pounding modern-day adventure set in one of the world’s last truly wild places, The Last of the Tribe is a riveting, brilliantly told tale of encountering the unknown and the unfathomable, and the value of preserving it.

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Audiobook, Anthropology, Brazil, Sociology, Indigenous

Hardcover

First published May 24, 2010

About the author

MONTE REEL is the author of two previous books, Between Man and Beast and The Last of the Tribe. His writing has appeared in The New Yorker, The New York Times Magazine, Harper's, and other magazines. He currently writes for Bloomberg Businessweek as part of its Projects & Investigations staff, and previously was a foreign correspondent for The Washington Post. He lives in Illinois.

Reviews

[The Pfaeffle Journal (Diane) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a nice overview of how Brazil is handling the indigenous population of the Amazon. In 1996 in the state of Rondonia, in the Northwest of Brazil sharing a border with Bolivia, the Brazilian government’s Indigenous Affairs Department (FUNAI) found a single male living alone in the forest. For ten years they attempted to make contact with him, to protect him from the heavy settlement happening in the state. Interspersed with the search for this one last tribesman, is the modern-day story of how Brazil is dealing with their indigenous population. Finally in 2006, though the FUNAI never made contact with the lone tribesman, the Brazilian government set aside 31 square acres for him. Once the lone tribesman is gone, the land will revert to a natural reserve.



Today there are about a 100 tribes that have not been contacted within Brazil and they wish to stay that way. Additional pictures and stories are available at Survival International

The book is a little slow at times, but an excellent read and well worth the read if interested in either the Amazon or the indigenous Peoples of the Americas.

This review was originally posted on The Pfaeffle Journal

[Grumpus · Rating 4 out of 5]

We humans are social animals. We’re programmed to interact with others. We need companionship. Given that, can you imagine being the last of your race/tribe?

This is the horrifying true story of Brazilian land owners pitted against the Indians (their word, not mine). This is the modern day; South American version of what happened to Native Americans in North America, except the technology has improved. According to Brazilian law, land in the areas featured cannot be developed if Indians are found on the land. Well, you can imagine how these land owners and developers feel about Indians. Some accuse those protecting the Indians, of shipping them in from other countries to stop development. The isolated nature of the area gives the bad folks an opportunity to remove the Indians themselves. Place your bets, 21st century weapons versus bows and arrows. Some examples ways they wiped out the Indians and removed all trace of their existence was despicable. It was as if the Indians were roaches and had to be exterminated. One particular sickening method still haunts me weeks after listening to it (audiobook). The Indians (like everyone) like sugar. Once, those seeking to eliminate the Indians dropped bags of sugar into a forest clearing for them. Once the entire village was there to retrieve it, they fire bombed them from helicopters. In another village, sugar packets laced with arsenic was given to the Indians. It was disgusting and made me ill. God forbid aliens would ever want the Earth for some purpose. I imagine humankind would be treated in similar fashion.

Another interesting aspect of the book was first contact. It was exciting to hear the description of what first contact is like. First, the Indian protectors left tools for the last of the tribe featured in the book. Then slowly you just observe each other from a distance. The Indian speaks his own unknown language so signing is very important. Then over a long period of time a cautious trust seems to develop, so you move closer while always showing you have no weapons as the ever-wary Indian keeps an arrow aimed at you. I won’t spoil it and tell you whether a rapport is established or not but it is one of the most captivating parts of the book.

Essentially, the question is, should this one man be able to die on his land and hold up its “development” that would likely benefit many others? The Brazilian government (with whom I obviously agree) says yes but, in these rural areas much corruption exists and a blind eye is turned toward this genocide. It is a moral dilemma for a developing country and is presented as the Trolley Car Problem. If you want to know more about the Trolley Car problem check out http://people.howstuffworks.com/troll....

Believe me; long after finishing this one, you won’t be able to stop thinking about it.

[Mikey B. · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very compelling narrative of the search for the last member of a tribe, in the Amazon rain forest of Brazils’ Rondonia province. The great strength and quality of this book is that it scrutinizes this search from several different angles.

Since Columbus there has always been a conflict between the ‘settlers’ and the indigenous peoples. Today, the Amazon rain forest, is still viewed as a land mass of opportunity for urban Brazil. People from the eastern seaboard can start a new life – at little cost. They can become farmers, ranchers or miners.

But what does this all mean to the aboriginal inhabitants? At best they are dislocated constantly in the face of ‘expanding civilization’ or at worst they are killed off. This book examines the dislocation of one man. He is sited over several years at various intervals, but there is never permanent contact. The small government group in Brazil that attempts to protect aboriginal peoples has an internal debate as to what type of ‘contact’ to have, and the ‘contact’ is not entirely up to them. Also by ‘actual contact’ the tribe itself is changed. And is this ‘contact’ going to be beneficial for the tribe?

In this case the tribe consists of one man. The author probes the isolation of this ‘last’ man and contrasts it with other isolated individuals through-out history.

There is also a personal cost of working in the government organization to protect the Indians. The Amazonian rain forest takes a physical toll on these modern day explorers. The ranchers and miners wield much more political power in the Amazon than a small government organization assigned to protect aboriginal peoples. The laws and legislation passed in a court in Brasilia have little impact hundreds of miles away. There is the paper law and the actual events.

As the author points out when modernity meets a native tribe, inevitably, in the short or the long run, the native tribe will be drastically altered.

All and all a most engaging and thought provoking book.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

Conheci a história do "índio mais solitário do mundo" em uma matéria de algum site que não lembro, mas não abandonei a história, adquiri o livro e fico bem contente em saber muito esforço foi feito para preservar a existência desse indígena e que no fim foi respeitava sua decisão de não não manter contato.

[Booknblues · Rating 4 out of 5]

Journalist Monte Reel presents a captivating story in his book The Last of the Tribeabout the story of an attempt to save a lone Indian by Brazil’s National Indian Foundation otherwise known as FUNAI. Reel is thorough in his investigation of the story and tells the tale in an interest manner with a pace that moves quickly. He informs the reader of the various complexities of the situation and the politics involved.

A lone Indian living off the grid is discovered in Rondonia in 1996. His existence is precarious because of deforestation along with the development of cattle ranches in the region. The local ranchers were known to take matters into their own hands sometimes destroying villages and killing Indians. But an Indian is not an animal specimen to be caught for a zoo, he is a human a sentient being who is autonomous and can choose to remain solitary. This man appeared to be in his thirties and did not respond to any of the native tongues in the region and built a hut distinguished by the unique hole which he dug in the middle of it.

Reel describes the ethical issues involved:

“The dicey interplay between technology and tradition was an ethical minefield. For centuries it had formed the unstable center in relations between the Amazon’s tribes and newcomers. Since colonial times, whites had used gifts of tools and other energy-saving products to buy goodwill from Indians. Explorers developed a tried-and-true method: set a gift rack on a jungle trail and load it with machetes, axes and bags of sugar. After receiving the gifts, the Indians might be more willing to meet peacefully. That practice was quickly hijacked by those with ignoble designs: whole tribes had been wiped out by people who laced sugar bags with poison and distributed them in the forest. That kind of thing happened with disturbing frequency. In 1957, rubber tappers loaded sugar bags with arsenic and later blamed the dead Tapayuna Indians found in the forest on “an epidemic.” Six years later, a rubber company overseer in Rondonia dropped sugar packets from an airplane and when Cinta Larga Indians gathered to collect the packets, he firebombed them.”

Perhaps one of the more interesting aspects of the story is the politics involved. Logging and ranching are big business and powerful forces in Brazil and they will go to great lengths to protect their interest. One single, lone Indian was an impediment which they wanted removed and they were willing to ruin the careers of those men who by their profession and conscience were trying to protect him.

I found the entire story intriguing and well written and I am pleased to recommend it.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book. It's about a man living in the Amazon who is the last surviving member of his tribe, and the Brazilian government's efforts to contact him and protect him from the ranchers and farmers whose land he lives on, who were most likely responsible for the death of all the other members of his tribe. The government agency wants to contact him so they can identify him as belonging to a unique culture and establish a reservation to protect him from the advances of the local farmers and ranchers, but the man mistrusts everyone since the destruction of his tribe and does everything he can to avoid having contact with them. Eventually, the agency members decide that their attempts to contact him do more harm than good and that the best policy is to monitor him from a distance, but not to force him to interact with them if he doesn't want to.

It was fascinating to learn that there are still native groups living in the Amazon who don't have any contact with outside groups. The book brought up all kinds of interesting issues, like who land should rightfully belong to, and the right people have to live as their ancestors lived, and the right people have to be alone if they want to be.

[Camila Augusto · Rating 5 out of 5]

muito bem escrito

[Matt · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought I'd enjoy this story about the quest to find the last Indian of an unknown tribe in a remote part of Brazil. There's a lot to consider in here: the risk of contact and the morality of it, the broader environmental themes of Indian preserves that are also about the environment. There's an element of swashbuckling adventure in it, too. This book has most of that, but I also found it really boring.

The interesting thing about the Indian-- like why he digs those holes-- are never addressed (I get it, we don't know, but there's not much else to latch onto here). The characters are real enough but never became folks I was committed to; though I felt some for Pura, I think maybe he was too alien for Reel to get a handle on. It just didn't seem interesting enough-- maybe it's a magazine article that became a book.

[JoAnna · Rating 5 out of 5]

Three-line review: This is a well-researched book about the challenges and implications of making contact with a single man living alone in the Amazon amid pressure to develop the area. Reel did an excellent job of providing important and thorough background on every person tied up in the controversy while also providing a balanced account of the economic, political and cultural implications of "saving" not only a one-person tribe but the place in which he lives. I learned a lot about a complex subject I didn't know much about, and I highly recommend the book to others interested in diving into a subject that is sure to become even more complicated as the world's natural resources are strained.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was just okay. Mostly because I had different expectations of it. I thought it would be about finding this lone survivor and learning from him and basically be a book about tribal life and stuff.

Not so. It is mostly bureaucratic talking about land disputes and political tension. Somewhat boring content. The missions into the jungle were interesting but the book is kind of spoiled by having the most thrilling part at the very beginning and then working our way up to and through that point.

[Jessica · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was pretty interesting and well written. I knew absolutely nothing about Amazonian Indian Tribes before picking up this book, and it covers not only the history of the lone tribe but also several other Amazonian Tribes, as they were “discovered” and how they chose (or not) to participate in modernization.
(part 6, 16:00)
AUDIOBOOK REVIEW: Read by Mark Bramhall. I liked this reader. He does well with the Portuguese words and accents of native speakers, when quoted directly. He’s not too dry nor was he boring to listen to. I listened at 1.5x speed.

[Elgin · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fascinating account of the rights of indigenous people vs commercial interests. It seems like Brazil finally got things right in the end. Too bad America cannot claim the same. In this era of climate change with fires and deforestation, the urgency in preserving the Amazon forests (and all vegetation world wide) is absolutely necessary, and should work on the sides of indigenous tribes.

[Dwight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating anthropology adventure. I first heard about this story on Radio Lab, and had to read it. Just as interesting as the one man tribe (which is a well told real life mystery) is the information about how the government relates to the other tribal people and situations.
Read it.

[Larry Crockett · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sort of dry. I guess it had a few good moments that were interesting. But I felt like I was hearing the same thing over and over

[Alice Hatter · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://youtu.be/tXNKqoT30gw

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting

[Nicki · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting subject, but a slow read.

[Krista · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is an interesting read about how Brazil has managed (or failed to manage) relationships with indigenous peoples in the Amazon. This book tells the story of the Brazilian governments attempts to find, contact and protect one man, who lives alone as the last member of his tribe and culture. It discusses all the people and politics that go into this discussion of indigenous policies, from the politicians who are making the laws to the contact front field agents who are living in or near the forest interacting with various indigenous tribes on a daily basis to the ranchers and loggers that are hiring people to kill or chase away indigenous people in order to prevent their land from being claimed for an "indian" reservation. Who has the rights to the land? Should isolated tribes be contacted or left alone? How should laws be enforced? How do you keep a man safe when you cannot communicate to him what danger he is in? While this book doesn't provide all the answers, it does introduce the history of how Brazil has attempted to answer the questions and the tensions within those questions and answers. Ultimately, I felt like I learned a lot from this interesting and thought-provoking read.

[Unwisely · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the sort of serendipitous find that happens when you go pick a book off the shelf of a well-stocked library instead of just requesting the hold. This is one of two books I grabbed when I went to get River of Darkness: Francisco Orellana's Legendary Voyage of Death and Discovery Down the Amazon. I had no idea other than the title, but, whoa.

It turns out there's a government agency in Brazil whose function is to identify uncontacted tribes and protect some land for their use. Reading this book reminded me of the whole host of problems in the Amazon (agriculture and timber vs preservation of the rainforest). Apparently nothing's been resolved since I was last paying attention in the 90's. (Except to the detriment of the Indians.)

I realize that description sounds kind of dry, but what this actually is a gripping mystery crossed with anthropology - both of the tribes profiled and the various groups of Brazilians. And it's ridiculously readable - I found myself wondering about it when I was supposed to be doing other things (like, working).

Overall, a really interesting book about real things happening right now. (My biggest complaint was that I had "Cuando los Ángeles Lloran" going through my head the whole time I was reading it. And really, it's a pretty good song...)

[Noni · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely fascinating. The author presents a riveting tale of a small group of men who risk their lives to save the last of Indigenous tribes in the Amazon against encroaching ranchers, loggers, and unscrupulous politicians. During the course of their work, rumors of a lone man living in the wilds of the Amazon rainforest reached their ears and so they set off to confirm the story. All efforts to interact with this Indian once they located his current camp were fruitless. Is he the lone survivor of his tribe? Is he possibly deaf and mute? They had been able to interact with others in the past, why not him? Is it worth creating a 31 mile protective barrier for just this one last male while the land still holds valuable commercial woods for ranchers and loggers? The author, an ex-reporter for the WAshington Post, is able to bring minute details to life so that one can almost see and hear the sounds of the Forest he is writing about. The Author's notes reveal that the efforts of the FUNAI to protect the Indigenous tribes and the Indian were methodically researched verifying the accuracies of the accounts.

[Sharon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm glad I read this on the heels of 1491. This is a story about why it is so important to save this one man even though, to many, it seems that the price is economic advancement for many hundreds of others. It also challenges the concepts of "advancement" and "progress" though in very subtle ways (see 1491 for a better challenge of how we Westerners position ourselves relative to those who lived in these lands before we got here). These are not clichéd or romantic readings, so if you're looking for something that positions indigenous peoples as idealized caretakers of the earth, look elsewhere. What _The last of the tribe_ provides is the story of how the Brazilian Government came to realize that there are limits to what can be done to one human being, and so they drew a line. Whether or not that line will hold is another issue entirely. What I value most about this book (and 1491) is the way it seeks to surface the assumptions behind how we see and value our lifestyle relative to ones we define as being "primitive".

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Last of the Tribe features a small Brazilian agency which must act to save a lone Indian from encroaching developers. The developers threaten the agents' mission not only through deforestation, but also through the corrupt political process. The backstories of all characters touched by the Indian are richly detailed, and the passions behind all stakeholders are clear. The Indian's story is enhanced by the portrayal of two other endangered tribes in the same Rondonia Province. The history of contacting isolated Indians is weaved seemlessly into the action-packed narrative of organizational strategy, political hearings, and dramatic standoffs. The book is well-suited for movie adaptation, and I'm thrilled it has attracted the interest of Doug Liman, who directed the Bourne Identity. I can't wait.

[David Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book seemed a little slow to me, but I found the subject very interesting and important. What a shame it is that even after our heart breaking history of slaughtering entire cultures because of the vagaries of geography, we still must undergo such an epic struggle to do right even by one man.

And what a profound existence this man has. Nobody else in the world speaks his language. He doesn't appear to speak it any more, being profoundly alone for 15 years now. Yet, he is highly functioning, enormously skilled, and deeply connected to the land on a level anybody reading this can never truly understand.

[Donald · Rating 5 out of 5]

The true story of a lone Indian's fight for survival and the men who dedicate their lives to preserving his right to carry on that fight, The Last of the Tribe is an amazing book. Monte Reel delivers a gripping account of a group of men dedicated to holding off loggers, ranchers, and their own government to save an indigenous man who appears to be the "last of his tribe" in northwestern Brazil.

Reel's writing is excellent, meticulously researched, and well paced. I thoroughly, thoroughly enjoyed this book.

[Jennyprice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I often struggle with non-fiction, especially when it comes to weighty subjects of which I have little to no background. BUT this book has more vibrant characters than much of the fiction I've read recently, from the Brazilian government agents searching furiously to save the last Indian of a tribe to the native people they enlist to help them in their quest. This book does a great job of weaving historical background with good-old fashioned suspenseful narrative. I was eager to see what would happen next, thanks to great and vibrant writing that pulled me in and kept me turning the pages.

[Jodi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book chronicles not only the saga of a handful of men attempting to preserve a parcel of forest for a man who appears to be the last living member of an Indian tribe, but also wrestles with issues of society's choices around land use and exploitation of resources. The author's fascination with the story of this lone Indian is obvious, and he did a good job researching and retelling the tale. Thought-provoking and intriguing, this book forces readers to try and fathom the nearly unimaginable reality of surviving alone in the forest. An interesting read.

[Jim · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellently well documented historical account of environmental, cultural and political intrigue in the Amazon.

This book poses serious ethical dilemmas and paradoxes. In making contact indigenous people we can learn more about their culture and perhaps assist in preserving it. But we can also dilute it, destroy their way of living, and spread disease and less desired effects of modern western culture such as alcoholism.

However, if contact is not made these cultures will surely be lost to time and never fully understood.

There are no easy answers.

[Greg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed. Heard about the lone Indian on NPR, in a special about human isolation and it's affects on the human psyche. A dramatic unfolding of events in a thoughtful and engaging tale about exploration, man's impact in the Amazon, and the dwindling indigenous populations it supports. With a cast of characters rivaling Don Quixote in their sense of adventure, lending voices to those who cannot speak, I was left awestruck and grateful for their hard work and perseverance.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Extremely interesting premise. Presents a fascinating look at the settling of the deep Amazon forests in Brazil in the 20th Century. It was similar to the story of the American West. Many of the issues and concerns faced by both sides (developers and the protectors of indigenous tribes) are discussed and analyzed. It also provides and fascinating look into what happens when indigenous peoples and 'modern' society collide and overlap.

[Mimi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a fascinating book on several levels. It is an amazing true story about the survival of a lone Indian (the rest of his tribe having been killed by ranchers) given the corrupt politics in the area. His survival is partly due to a few individuals who fought for him, but also due to his ability to keep disappearing into the forest.