Hoffman charts the engrossing backstory of both men, and through meticulous research, interviews and personal visits, he paints a vivid character portrait of the two adventurers while detailing the incredible splendor of the unique region.
In reading The Last Wild Men of Borneo, then, you might find yourself doing as I did: rushing through the chapters on Palmieri to get back to the adventures of Manser. His is quite a story — exciting, funny and tragic — and Hoffman tells it extraordinarily well.
In a way that makes readers eager to find out more and learn why, Hoffman tells a mouth-drying tale of beauty, risk and opportunity .. Seeing great details in these parallel narratives and a perfectly-worked ending, Hoffman carefully preserves two mysteries: one with a contented life and one in death. Who could resist?
Hoffman avoids stereotyping, pointing out that while Manser and Palmieri both, to varying degrees, pursued the clichéd notion of a purer, more spiritual life through Eastern culture, neither the tribesmen nor the expat interlopers truly stepped out of the present ... Hoffman’s fascination and enthusiasm are readily apparent on every page. Combined with diligent research and a refreshing less-is-more narrative – the book goes in-depth but is devoid of notebook-dumping – Last Wild Men of Borneo deserves a wide audience. After turning the last page, this reader considers that all but inevitable.
Hoffman remains a gifted, suspenseful storyteller and, fortunately, both stories are compelling. Tough-talking American art dealer Michael Palmier, who tries to find bargain treasures for museums, reveals his clever methods for spotting fakes. And gonzo Swiss environmentalist Bruno Manser is, like Michael Rockefeller, an inspiring individual who allows his passions to overrule common sense. Palmier and Manser may not come together in any meaningful way but another way to look at The Last Wild Men of Borneo is that it's two books for the price of one.
Hoffman, who followed the footsteps of both men, interweaves cliff-hanging scenes, such as Manser suffering a pit viper bite and Palmieri smuggling artifacts, with a history of colonialism of the island. The result is a deeply informative anthropological study disguised as an adventure tale.
The two stories do not always neatly track, but Hoffman does an excellent job entering the worlds and minds of two men who did not fit in and who carved out their own destinies—if, of course, in other people’s homelands.
