TALES OF A SHAMANS
APPRENTICE by Mark J. Plotkin / 1993 / 318 pages.
Mark Plotkin, chief ethno biologist
for Conservation International, has spent
much of the last decade in the rain forests tracking the
shamans whose knowledge of the curative powers of plants
may hold the cure to some of today's devastating
diseases. This is the fascinating account of his
apprenticeships to these powerful wise men, an
anthropological adventure story that also vividly
clarifies what destruction of the region's plant species
may ultimately cost humanity. "Every time a shaman
dies, it is as if a library burned down,' Plotkin reminds
us. No one could convey the potential tragedy of this
statement more convincingly than this author, who has
done something to remedy it. A captivating plea for more
effective management of the rain forest's botanical,
medicinal, and cultural resources."
