Dead birds is an unusual, evocative and very impressive novel. Set in Papua New Guinea, it is based on the 1877 journey of Italian naturalist, collector and explorer Luigi d'Albertis and his crew as they travel by boat up the Fly River in search of new specimens, ethnographic artefacts and the much-prized birds of paradise. Astonishingly, it is told from the perspective of a head in a jar! The head belongs to the a local tribesman who has been killed by Albertis' crew. Dead Birds is a novel that goes beyond just quirky to be a truly original, beautifully crafted work
