There’s something strange about the b irds in this small country town

‘Whenever you want to go down the beach, you have to make sure you go with friends — don’t ever go by yourself.’

Josephine Gideon was born 100 years after blackbirding began. But as a child she was startled by the sound of boats and cars, and by the sight of white people.
She lives on the island of Tanna in Vanuatu, where in the late 19th and early 20th century, thousands of men and boys were taken to work as indentured labourers on plantations in Australia.
In this week’s episode of our Shifting Cultures series, Fiona Pepper visits this small community to see how the legacy of this trade lives on today.
Another unmissable story this weekend is On the Comora, from the Oz Gothic series of short audio fiction.
It’s about a young broken-hearted woman who escapes the city, taking up a teaching post in a town full of birds. If you love the sound of magpie song, this one’s for you.
And if that leaves you curious about the supernatural, Alice Moldovan's story on jinn, golems and pretas is well worth a read. You might not believe in monsters, but there’s a lot they can teach us about human nature.
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My recommendation: Justine Toh

While James Carleton takes a short break, Justine Toh is filling in as the host of God Forbid. Her recommendation is Lost and Found with Jonathan Green, a program she says instantly grabbed her with its zippy pace.
“It’s part travelogue, part anthropology on the run, allowing you to dip into other places and get a glimpse of how life is lived there, and how political and social issues are exposed — and wrestled with — through place,” she says.
"Two episodes stand out for me: his exploration of the pretensions of Silicon Valley (where the hoodie is like an anticonformist uniform), and his whirlwind tour of Jakarta, with mouth-watering descriptions of murtabak (pancake stuffed with nutella and banana).
"With a young family, travel is something that’s on hold for now, but when I want to be anywhere but here, it’s great to be hosted by Jonathan and explore different cultural worlds."
Hear Lost and Found on Radio National every Saturday at 10am, Sunday at 1pm, or any time on the ABC listen app.