Hawaii Books

The author has a deep understanding and comprehensive knowledge of the buddha's teachings. He approaches such an understanding by identifying then exiting social and philosophical problems in India. With his proper interpretation of some major Western thinkers, Dalupahana makes it easier to compare the ethical theories and draw the generalization for practical application. However, as he admits, the arugement. as he presented, for moral life is still weak for moral skeptic (p. 108). The rarity of human life still depends on the premise of rebirth and its consequences. I wish the author has used and compared the Platonic argument for moral life with the Buddha's. Overall, Kalupahana makes a great contribution to the understanding of the "heart" of the buddhist thoughts. It would be even a greater contribution should he venture into contemporary buddhist ethics.

I live in Hilo, on the Big Island. I have a copy of this book in our guest rooms, along with a book called, "The Big Island Revealed". Experience the Big Island... is superior in that it was published more recently and it has several useful lists in the back with all of the info you need to make reservations for any activity you plan to do here. I sent a copy of this book as well as the big island revealed (wizard publishing), to our friends and family planning to visit the big island this summer. Each book has a slightly different perspective as the author of "revealed" lives in Kona, while the author of "experience" lives in Hilo. Enjoy!

*****
This small book (122 pages) is filled with beautiful vintage photos of the Upcountry area of Maui, including Paia, Hamakuapoko, Pauwela, Haiku, Makawao, Haliimaile, Keahua, Jula, Keokea, and Ulupalakua. The vintage photos are beautiful black-and-white pictures, many from the Maui Historical Society and other archives.

Each photo has a paragraph of explanation included. Reading this book is a pleasant way to preview a visit to Maui's upcountry, for those who have a historical interest. Or a way to relive memories of visiting or living in upcountry Maui. Although I collect books about Hawaii, and have a particular interest in Maui, I have found few books available with information and pictures like this one.

Highly recommended.
*****

Crowe takes us beyond the usual genre by sharing not only the beauty, but also the history and magic of Hawaii. A must for anyone taking a trip to the Islands...beautiful photographs.

This book is not for beginners whatsoever. It states in the preface that the reader should have Level 3 knowledge in terms of the JLPTs (Japanese Language Proficiency Tests), and I agree. If you plan on using this book, you need to have a good grasp of the Japanese language, which means a year of more of college level classes, or several years of independent study. I have taken 4 years of high school Japanese, and I still had some trouble with a few examples.

That being said, this is what I was looking for in a language book: authoritative information. If you search Amazon, you'll find dozens of basic Japanese books that all teach the same basic information. Numbers, objects, days of the week, changing verbs to past tense and informal forms... after a point, it's like hitting a wall with learning new things, you still don't have a solid understanding of the subtle differences of the language.

Expressive Japanese is long overdue. It teaches you to understand what a person is feeling when she says something, and shows examples of other variations conveying the same emotion. Hundreds of examples written in normal text (with kana and kanji), romaji versions, and English equivalents. It also has a system in which the text explains the context of these conversations (most of them taken from actual sources, like tv and books).

It's a big book with no waste of space, but it has no repeating or filler. It contains substantial illustrations of the nuances of specific expressions and leaves the readers with the task of knowing or looking up in a dictionary most of the other words.

It is not a textbook; it doesn't have lessons. Essentially, this is best used as a supplement to whatever method you are already using to learn Japanese. I have no doubt this book will be used as part of upper level courses in college classes, but it is not so pedantic that you need an instructor to explain the text. It is fully capable of holding its own weight, and is extremely helpful in advancing your understanding of speech, especially if you feel you can understand most manga and anime, but need a little help in catching the undertones of the characters.

If you've seen enough of the standard guides on Hawaii, try this one out as an alternative to the regularity of the norm. We discovered lots of amazing "locals only" secrets from this book. You will too if you are going to HI for outdoor activity.

Surprisingly, I found this book very interesting. It doesn't really read like a dull and rote textbook. (I hardly consider this book a textbook.) It is an easy read that is appropriately compiled and organized.

The book is set in simple language for people to understand and clearly distinguishes the practices of different cultures' attitudes towards medicine. The two cultures in question here are Vietnam and western culture. The traditional Vietnamese remedies are interesting read about and many of them make a lot of sense.

I read this book for leisure after picking it up for some research. I ended up not using it for my paper but kept it becuase of its interesting coverage of Vietnamese culture.

I write fiction about Hawaii and need to do a great deal of research. I bought this book to help with that research and it certainly does the job. Ms. Clarke's book is just excellent. I recently attended a funeral on Oahu and now I know what we were doing during the various parts of the funeral. Maybe you know some parts of your family history/traditions, but I'll bet this book will teach you something about your culture that you didn't know before. Highly recommended.

This a fascinating, beautifully photographed, colorful field guide to some incredible creatures that crawl, climb, hop and swim in Hawaii. You'll learn what they look like, where they live, how they live, where they came from, how they reproduce, how to care for them in captivity, and interesting, fascinating facts about each of the species covered. The large color photographs are particularly striking. Includes glossary, bibliography, index and distribution maps. You'll find this book interesting whether or not you take it into the field, and even if you have only a mild interest in the subject. It's easy to get pulled in. Good job!

Award-winning writer Joseph Stanton presents A Field Guide to the Wildlife of Suburban O'ahu, his latest free-verse poetic contribution inspired by the exotic and wondrous majesty of Hawaii. Created with equal reverence for elements of the natural world and constructs put together via the labor of Hawaii's human residents, A Field Guide to the Wildlife of Suburban O'ahu is sometimes tongue-in-cheek, sometimes lyrically beautiful, always a joy to read. "Rainbow over River Street": A rainbow sings low / over River Street's / bridge after bridge after bridge, / a chorus of curves. // The bright click-clack / of mahjong tiles / keeps time / in the key of light.