Book excerpt: Journeying eastward from the massif of Kanchenjunga that dominates the Indo-Nepal border, the authors take us through Sikkim, North Bengal, Assam, Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh before moving southwards along the Naga Patkai range and the hill states of Nagaland, Manipur and Mizoram, coming to a halt in Tripura. With stunning visuals of the Great Himalayas, including Kanchenjunga National Park, now a World Heritage Site, the authors knit together a comprehensive picture of India's northeastern-most corner, home to indigenous people like the Sherdukpen, the Monpa, the Aka, the Nyishi, the Adi, the Mishmi, the Nocte and Wancho, the Lai and Mara, and Naga, Kuki and Mixo -- diverse peoples with distinct culture. This volume weaves geography with history, myths of origin with daily like, and religion with culture to produce a seminal volume in the documentation of India's little-known northeast.