The Sleeping Dictionary

English officer John Truscott is a recent graduate who is still wet behind the ears when it comes to the world at large. The British government dispatches him to Borneo. His mission is to assist in the colonization of the native Sarawak population. As native custom dictates, Truscott is given a sleeping dictionary named Selima. She is a concubine who will share his bed as well as teach him the local customs and language. The restriction is not becoming personally attached to your dictionary. Truscott's relationship with Selima is carefully scrutinized by his superior officer Henry Bullard and wife Aggie to ensure neither of them deters from the arrangement. John, with Selima in tow, is assigned to investigate the illness that has stricken the Yakata tribe. They soon discover the nearby European miners have been providing tainted rice to the locals. The Yakata are an expansion deterrent. John thwarts the conspiracy by explaining the situation to the Yakata. John and Selima grow too close for comfort for her tribe and Bullard. John is ordered back to Britain. He is bent on reuniting with Selima upon his return. Will the reunion be a blessing or add more chaos into their lives?