Masao Kashinaga is an anthropologist whose research specializes in the Tai Dam (“Black Thai”) people who live in the area bordering Vietnam, Laos, and Thailand. This book features a collection of his travel essays. Kashinaga has spent twenty-five years visiting the area, witnessing the changes in Vietnam and Laos from the cultural and political upheavals brought by colonialism to recent wars. He has returned to the area again to show a close friend around. These essays include stories as he meets again with key figures from his time there, local myths and legends related by various minority groups, and fieldwork that seems to blend reality and fiction. Along with Kashinaga’s detailed maps and memos, this book is sure to stir up excitement as you turn the pages of his travels.

Myths Found by the Roadside: Ethnography Connecting Vietnam and Laos
By Masao Kashinaga
Published by Sayusha