Preface

Turin outlines the goals of the World Oral Literature Series, a publishing initiative which has not only made the study of oral literature more accessible, but also enabled the establishment of collaborative publishing partnerships between indigenous intellectuals and outside scholars. Turin points out that this very book is a product of that exact type of relationship. The cooperation between Dr. Li Dechun—a Mongghul surgeon and established scholar—and anthropologist Gerald Roche offers a rich lesson in the lasting value of respectful collaboration.