The Legend of the Golden Boat provides a new approach to the study of Southeast Asia"s northern borderlands. Based on extensive travel in the upper Mekong hinterland, it is a fascinating account of the lives of the transport operators, traders, entrepreneurs, and government officials who are contributing to the contemporary revival in upper Mekong cross-border connections.This ethnographic study is set against an intriguing background of war, revolution, and reform, providing one of the most detailed histories of the upper Mekong borderlands ever written.