Hawaii Books

Aloha Summer is very good. Actually, I think Bill Wallace is good. In fourth grade, I met Bill Wallace at the Belle Isle Public Library. I think Bill Wallace is very funny. He had some funny stories to tell. Bill Wallace is also a very nice man. I also got to see Bill Wallace's wife, Carol Wallace. I understand that Bill Wllace lives in Chickasha, Oklahoma. I also live in Oklahoma. I think Aloha Summer is the best book Bill Wallace has written.

I bought this book for my daughter before we went on a trip to Hawaii and afterwords she couldn't wait to arrive. She is already a HUGE Bill Wallace fan. If you read all of his other reviews you'll soon see why he is so loved by kids. Anyway, I thought the story my daughter told me was very interesting and so when we returned from Hawaii I myself read the book. The book was amazing. It depicted Hawaii as we saw it and related how it had been before all the developement. The characters were very real to life and I could see how my daughter could relate to the story. Hawaii is a magical place and so is this book. I read the Horn review and found it to be completely wrong so I just had to write one from a REAL reader and parent of a beloved fan. Not to mention a new fan-- ME!

Baby Honu (a turtle) doesn't think that he can help Keiki Naia (a dolphin) who is stranded on the beach. He asks many animals to help but all say it is the way of the ocean and tell him to give up. Finally, he gets an idea from a creature even smaller than he is and he realizes that even though he is small he can still make a difference.
We bought this book on a trip to Hawaii and it immediately become one of my 2 year old daughter's all time favourite books. I love that it uses the Hawaiian names for the animals. My daughter uses her favourites, "Kohola", "Honu", and "Keiki Naia", in her usual speech. This book is great for all ages and the illustrations are stunning.
I love the message in this book: perseverance and small actions that bring about big results!
You will not be disappointed with this book!

The Spirit of Aloha is perfectly embodied in this wonderful book.
Akahai: kindness expressed w/tenderness, Lokahi: unity expressed w/harmony, Olu-olu: agreeable expressed with pleasantness, Ha-aha-a: humilty expressed w/modesty, and Ahonui: patience expressed w/perseverance. (yeah, I had to look that up)
Baby Honu is a little dude, but nevertheless learns of his importance to the collective existence of all living creatures.
The use of Hawaiian words helps make the story an important cultural lesson (there is even a glossary in the back) and the illustrations are artfully detailed and colorful.
My son loves this sweet story as much as I enjoy reading it (and if you love reading out loud as much as I do, there are a lot of fun voices to "do").
We bought this book on a trip to Hawaii and I was so happy to see it on Amazon - it's my favorite gift to give for kids of all ages.
Thank you Tammy Yee for one of my favorite children's books!

I have several uncles who fought in WWII, including my father. My living uncle is proud of the way this book was presented, through the eyes of the Marines. In addition, his brother, my uncle, is found several times throughout the book with accurate accounts of the day the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor. It is a very fascinating read even if you are not a war buff.

I bought this for my husband who is a USS Arizona historian, and he loved it. Picture quality is good, book put together well, etc. When I hear no complaints from hubby, its a VERY good sign. I would say that its worth the money

Thus book was a labor of love. With years of experience as a lifeguard and surfer, John's curiousity went beyond. He studied oceanography, read all he could, and interviewed all those who knew anything about each beach. The result is the best source of information that will ever be available about Hawaiian beaches.

THE GREATNESS OF KAUAI'S BEACHES.

I found the book very interesting and stimulating. It consists of the information about the Tongan culture and people, especially the Tongan children and how they absorb the Tongan culture through socialization or "becoming" process. It gives the whole picture of the Tongan society with implicit and explicit views of their traditions, thoughts, and behaviors. I would recommend anyone who wants to undestand the Tongan culture to reak this good book.

Thank you, Helen Morton! This is an understandable description of the Tongan culture from pre-missionary times to the current trends! Helen Mortan is in a unique position to introduce the Tongan culture to the Western Mindset. She is Australian and was married to a Tongan Man, and has his child. She presents her facts in a scholarly manner. I found this book to be much more than an ethnography of Childhood. It made the very different "Tongan Way" completely comprehensible to me.

David Malo, a Hawaiian, was born around 1793, died in 1853. He left behind his record of Hawaiian life, translated by N. Emerson in 1898. Malo became a Christian minister, and this influenced his interpretation and presentation of this material. Emerson wrote, in his introduction to this volume, "Though nurtured in the superstitious faith and cult of old Hawaii, and though a man of tenacious opinions, when the light reached him [I assume this was a "religious light"], the old errors were dissipated with the darkness, as clouds are dissolved by the rising sun, and his [Malo's] whole intellectual and moral nature felt the stimulus and burst forth with a new growth" (p. xiii). This hints at both Malo's biases, as well as the biases of Emerson. So we use this volume as a hint at ancient Hawaii, not as the definitive reference on old Hawaii.

Here are some examples:

There was a chapter on making stone axes. Malo states "Now come new kinds of axes from the lands of the white man. But iron had reached Hawaii before the arrival of the foreigner, a jetsam iron which the chiefs declared sacred to the gods [I assume this was iron pieces connected to wood washing up on beaches from shipwrecks]... Iron is plentiful now, and so are all kinds of iron tools, including the kitchen ax, the hatchet, the adz, broad-ax, chisel, etc. These are the new tools which have been imported. The stone-ax ('koi-pohaku') is laid aside" (p. 51-52). This hints at the substitution of one technology for another, and the loss of the first.

"It was the policy of the government to place the chiefs who were destined to rule, while they were still young, with wise persons, that they might be instructed by skilled teachers in the principles of government, be taught the art of war, and be made to acquire personal skill and bravery" (p. 53). This may have been an idealized goal, but I doubt this occurred as a manner of policy.

"The feathers of birds were the most valued possessions of the ancient Hawaiians" (p. 76)... "The carved whale tooth, or 'niho-palaoa', was a decoration worn by high chiefs who alone were allowed to possess this ornament. They were not common in teh ancient times, and it is only since the reign of Kamehameha I that they have become somewhat more numerous" (p. 77). I assume this was due to whale teeth trading from the visiting ships.

"Salt was one of the necessaries and was a condiment used with fish and meat, also as a relish with fresh food" (p. 123).

"Water, which was one of the essentials os a meal, to keep one from choking or being burned with hot food..." (p. 123).

"Sharks' teeth were the means employed in Hawaii nei for cutting the hair. The instrument was called 'niho-ako-lauoho'. The shark's tooth was firmly bound to a s tick, the the hair was bent over the tooth and cut through with a sawing motion. If this method caused too much pain another resource was to use fire" (p. 123).

"A ship was like a section of the earth quietly moving through the water. On account of their great size, when the first ships arrived here, people flocked from remote districts to view them. Great were the benefits derived from these novel craft, the like which had never been seen before. ...Many blessings have come to this race through these new sea-going craft. It was by them the word of God was conveyed to these shores, which is a blessing greater than any sought for by the ancients" (p. 132).

In his preface, David Malo wrote: "I do not suppose the following history to be free from mistakes, in that the material for it has come from oral traditions; consequently it is marred by errors of human judgment and does not approach the accuracy of the word of God."

I agree, but this has to be one of best, and most complete, remaining first-person recollections of old Hawaii. For those interested, this is an essential reference.

This is a classic work in Hawaiian literature. Written approx in 1840, the author bridges an ancient,pagan, pre-Cook Hawaiian world; and a new world of foreigners, private property, diseases, Christianity, and a struggle to maintain a Hawaiian identity.

Malo describes many aspects of ancient Hawaiian life and culture, including tools and technology, land tenure, religious practices, politics, agriculture, medicine, games and amusements, marriage and family life, etc. This text is still considered a primary source for knowledge of Hawaiian culture in the era before Captain Cook sailed into Kealakekua Bay.

Malo never quite mastered the English language, so Hawaiian Antiquities was written in Hawaiian. It is one of the few books in the canon of texts written in Hawaiian. It is especially valuable to linguists to have been written by a native speaker, and is essential to the modern study of Hawaiian grammar, syntax, and vocabulary.

Of particular interest are the many "mele" (songs) quoted. Malo believed, as many people still do, that the "mele" was the highest Hawaiian art form, integrating music, poetry, and hula, often in a religious context.

Malo himself seems a somewhat dispeptic sort. A Christian minister in the rigid mold of the Protestant missionaries, he disdained many of the customs and practices he describes. He occasionally disparages the primitive technology and culture of his people. Yet for all his prejudice, Malo's tone is usually dispassionate and objective.

He gets a few facts wrong. (Hawaiian surfboards may have been long, but they were never 30-40 feet long.) Modern cultural anthropologists must surely cringe at his omissions and technique. And modern Hawaiian language teachers are still sorting out his spelling and grammatical errors (hey, do you speak perfect English?)But nobody disagrees that we are very lucky to have this book.

We are so disappointed that Ms. Fujii has not updated this book, as we had purchased two editions and used them each time we went to Hawaii! Her suggestions were wonderful, and we were able to plan our trips within our budget and interests. We are now planning another trip after several years have passed, and will use the old edition, with hopes, however, that she will write another!!!

We go to Hawaii 5 times a year, and we love this book. A little outdated for the hotels, but food and stores and sights are awesome. A must have. Jocelyn should write an update to this book, instead of writing for Frommer's.

I absolutely fell in love with this book because of the illustrations while I was in Maui. I have shared it with my entire family and they all love it. Yes, this is a childrens book but I highly recommend it to everyone. The illustrations were very beautiful and the characters were very comical and told me a lot about the native animals of Hawaii.

At first I fell in love with this book purely because of the delightful illustrations by Michael Furuya. But after reading it over and over I found it to be a great introduction to the problems of Hawaii's native species, even for adults(as it is a childrens book). Although it is basic, the story about a Hawaiian Tree snail who meets up with a Hawaiian Happy Face spider and goes searching for adventure is fun and swiftly paced. It then introduces some of the many introduced species that have wreaked havoc on native flora and fauna.
I loved this story, it is great for anyone who has an interest in Native Hawaiian Fauna, especially for teaching children, or anyone who collects childrens books ( for illustrations or otherwise).

Takamura Kotaro was one of the few Japanese writers to continue publishing during the height of World War 2. He managed to do this by writing propaganda poems of the government. After the war, he found himself regretting his support for something that seemed so against his principles. This collection of poems and prose traces back his blind devotion to key moments in his childhood. Educated in France, his free form poetry smacks of French influence giving it a much lighter tone. Almost as moving as his collection of poetry about his wife, Chieko, it offers an eye opening look into one poet's remorse about his past actions.

I came across this talented poet/sculptor when I read the powerfully longing poem "To Someone [Not To Play]" p. 98 and knew that I had to have a book of his writing. I don't normally buy books and this is money well spent. I typically will borrow from the library but I had to make an exception with Takamura Kotaro! I only wish I owned a book of his and his wife's sculptures/artwork compilations!

I think e.e. cummings would have enjoyed "To Someone" a lot. I definitely find that his work is emotive, in the most creative sense imaginable. He was a Japanese sculptor, who was inspired by Auguste Rodin and worked in Paris. This book includes an incredible, insightful biography and commentary on his poems.

Chieko, his wife, suffered from schizophrenia and then later died in a sanitorium, much to his guilt. I noticed the similarities to his mother, when I read one poem [p.57 "Thinking of Mother"]. He idealized both of them, in their insecurities, martyrdom, and pure conscientiousness. His poems seemed to ask, "is a female's power wielded in ...leaving it, in leaving him?" Quite passive-aggressive.

The timeless poems, "Mountain Woods", "The Snow Has Piled White", and "Fountain of Mankind" reminded me of Robert Frost in their beautiful imagery of Mother Nature, of life as an endless experience of the seasons, both internally and externally.

"Lemon Elegy" was SO intense, you could TASTE the poem itself! The words conveyed an emotional power that could only be described as similar to the black and white, silent cinematography in "Snow Falling On Cedars". This is also one of his most famous poems and completely deserving! I will print this out and frame it, display it with a Rodin sculpture reproduction in my house, in tribute of this truly exquisite poet. Takamura Kotaro is my favorite poet of all time, after reading this wonderfully translated book that Hiroaki Sato made rich with nuance and kept authentic to the poet's character, meanings and moods. You will not regret buying this book. You will only regret not having enough copies to go around, when you want to send it out to everyone whom you share a special, emotional, intellectual, and spiritual bond with in your life.

I believe that Kotaro's experiences of guilt, grief, and frustration, even anger would be very useful for anyone whose had to cope with a chronic/debilitating illness in a family member. His wife died of TB 3 years after he had her hospitalized. Only those who have lived with schizophrenia in their families or have seen it up close in friends/loved ones can truly understand his decision and his intense guilt.

The insight this book offers is wonderful for ANYONE caught up in grief, or has experienced loss, as it is highly cathartic.

A brilliant collection of essays. Excellently selected, well edited and full of ideas which demand attention. Perhaps the net effect can best be summed up as scraping away of some old and spreading out smoothly of fresh clean gomaya - the result is a whole new set of answers, questions and provocations. Most of us will have copies of some of the papers, but almost certainly not all and certainly not in such a handy format. This book is an essential item on any buddhologist's bookshelf (come to think of it perhaps Greg can send his niece - see the nice anecdote in his introduction - a copy so she will learn what a good buddhologist does)

This book is every bit as excellent as Schopen's prior publication. He has an incredible knack for taking what you'd think are boring, dusty details and breathing life into them in order to really explore what Buddhism was in India. This guy never assumes anything, and you never come away from his books with the same view of Buddhism as you had before. And he writes with clarity and verve, which is so painfully rare in the scholarly world today.