Jungle Child [Paperback]

G.K. Chesterton said, "the things common to all men are more important than the things peculiar to any men." Keugler writes of peculiar circumstances, but the deep, underlying story is one common to all: a deep, unfulfilled (yet) longing for Home. And because she clearly does not (yet) know where to turn to fulfill those longings, the book ends sadly with Sabine still lost: she does not belong in Germany, or among the Fayu, or anywhere. Yet.

But Kuegler's circumstances are familiar to some. I married a `child of the jungle'--same island, same jungle, different tribe. We know some of her places, and the book is especially interesting to us because we (both missionary kids) share some of her memories: jungles, multilingualism, cannibals, crocodiles, insects, intimate friendships with `natives,' helicopters, wars, boarding schools, and a traumatic transition to being westerners lost in the West--a poignant combination of comedy and tragedy.

Kuegler's childhood, like that of many `third culture kids,' was lived in snippets--little chunks of interrupted time (like her 2-4 page chapters): a few weeks or months in the village, then a trip `out' to Jayapura, then back to the village, then a semester at boarding school, then back to the village for Christmas vacation. Her book of short chapters is a skillfully interwoven (not disconnected), almost impressionistic, collection of topics and incidents.

The second half of Kuegler's book is pierced by a wistful, powerful `Sehnsucht' (a German word she does not use)--a deep longing for something she has difficulty describing, or even identifying. As she writes of death, of separation from family and Fayu friends, of feeling misfit among her `own kind,' readers can sense her longing to belong. She mourns paradise lost and fears there is none to be regained. In "Surprised by Joy," C. S. Lewis' life is also pervaded by this Sehnsucht, and then by the joy of its fulfillment. Kuegler, hopefully, will (like Lewis and Chesterton) look again to the `good Spirit' she briefly mentions in chapters 3, 30, and 45. This longing is His gift to prod us into finding our Home (Heb. 11:13-16). I hope then to read a more joyful sequel to Kuegler's delightful first book.

A fascinating autobiography of Sabine Kuegler, who in 1980, when she was seven, accompanied her missionary parents to Irian Jaya (the Indonesian part of the Island of New Guinea) to live with the Fayu, a previously uncontacted tribe, living in the Stone Age (and by Stone Age, I refer to the Fayu technology, withholding any value judgement). Despite the difficult living conditions, she felt immediately at home with the Fayu, and she provides a fascinating account of their lives (and her life with them). Kuegler's parents, at the same time, gradually taught the Fayu to live peacefully, breaking the cycle of revenge and murder that has ruled their behavior for centuries, causing the Fayu to live in constant fear. Sabine fit in so well to life on the New Guinea jungle, that she felt totally confused and out of her element when she returned to Europe, at 17. Living initially in a boarding school in Switzerland, her culture shock manifested itself in having in a short time a baby out of wedlock, married, divorced, sank into depression and attempted suicide. At the end of the book, she has sort of settled in, though she never forgets what she sees as her idyllic years in the jungle. All in all, a fascinating book. By the way, Sabine's parents appears unnamed (as "a courageous husband and wife missionary couple") in Jared Diamond's book "Gun, Germs and Steel", at the beginning of the chapter From Egalitarianism to Kleptocracy.

Sabine Kuegler's memoir is probably the best biography I have ever read. This is an outstanding book about a life most westerners would find unimaginable. After finishing this wonderful life story, I doubt that I will ever forget this incredible woman.

Sabine Kuegler was only five years old when her German parents moved her and her siblings to the wild jungle rainforest of West Papua, which is the other half of Papua New Guinea in Indonesia. Her parents were missionary/anthropologists who had a goal to live amongst the newly found lost tribe of the Fayu natives. To be a part of their daily lives and jungle community, to learn their language and culture, and to assist them in an eventual integration with the western world without losing their land, their heritage and people, was their new mission. As Sabine was just a toddler when she arrived there from Nepal where her parents had their last assignment, she was raised with the Fayu children and became a true child of the jungle. The family lived in a screen enclosed hut, ate insects, bats, crocodile, and wild boar along with the staples of rice and sago which is a floury paste substance derived from palm trees. She became a Fayu child, a hunter-gatherer, prowled the rainforest naked, learned to hunt with bow and arrow, climbed trees to escape dangerous animals, lived in total wonder of the natural world around her, and acquired an incredible knowledge of the flora and fauna beneath the treetop canopy. A lover of animals, she collected a menagerie of pets such as spiders the size of dinner plates, parrots, mini-kangaroos, cats, bats, birds, lizards and whatever else crawled into her path. A brave and vivacious young girl, she took the hardships of jungle survival in stride and turned her trials and tribulations into experiences of wonders to behold. Facing flash floods, intense tropical heat, bug infestations, malaria and other medical challenges, Sabine was the love of her family and became the chosen child of the Fayu who grew to love her as their own.

Learning about the marvels of the rainforest and the incredibly interesting culture of the Fayu tribe was insightful, enlightening and fascinating. They are a loving people now, but previous to the admittance of the Kuegler family, they were a tribe of vicious warring people on the brink of extinction due to constant inner tribal conflicts leading to extreme mortality rates. Sabine's father became a brother to the Fayu, and while integrating himself into their lives he learned their complicated language, survival tactics, centuries of legends, and was taught to respect their jungle politics and ceremonies. This enabled them to trust him, which in turn allowed them to eventually learn ways of diplomacy and peace that would settle their differences with love and forgiveness.

The Kuegler family lived amongst the Fayu for many years. Sabine and her siblings stayed until they became college age where at that time, they were then shipped off to various European and American colleges. These teenagers needed to literally learn how to be civilized city folk in the western world. However, for Sabine, this was too much to bear. After tragedy had struck her life when a Fayu brother died of Tuberculosis, she felt she could no longer live the jungle life and accepted the offer to attend a boarding school in Switzerland. Sabine's story from that point on was the most challenging part of her life. She painfully soon became confused, depressed, and traumatized. This innocent naïve nature child had never seen a telephone, a computer, a stereo, a television, automobiles, grocery stores, money, nor any of the everyday items we westerners in the modern world have taken for granted our entire lives. She became paralyzed, afraid to cross the street into traffic, shook in fear of her ignorance of the world and became haunted as to where she truly belonged.

Her writings of the college days are at times hilarious to the point where the reader is belly-laughing out loud, but at times you will also find yourself wiping the tears from your eyes as she becomes heartbreakingly suicidal as she struggles to belong. I have never been so entranced by a personal story as this, and felt deeply moved by reading about her amazing life filled with ups and downs. I promise you readers, that Child of the Jungle will be the most extraordinary book you will have come across in decades. This story is perfect for all readers in monthly book club discussion groups and a book you will be passing around to so many friends you might not get it back! This memoir deserves awards, international recognition, and more stars I'm allowed to give it. Standing ovation..clap clap clap!!!

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