Newly published works
reflect the local spirit in
many different ways
Here are some potential gift books chosen from among local-interest titles published in time for the holiday season. Any one would make a thoughtful Christmas present for the right person:
"Kamehameha -- The Boy Who Became a Warrior King" by Ellie Crowe, illustrated by Don Robinson (Island Heritage, $15.95)
These are the lost and mythological years of Kamehameha's life, a combination of Western legend shoe-horned onto Hawaiian oral traditions and a dark tale of political and intrigue. To her credit, Crowe steers a course of realism colored by unexpected fate. But the book is really a showpiece for Robinson's brilliant illustrations -- he really has a way with color and texture to provide an emotional effect.
"Kamehameha -- The Warrior King of Hawaii" by Susan Morrison, illustrated by Karen Kiefer (University of Hawai'i Press, $12.95)
This is the other young-adult bio of the king out this season, and it's geared more for reading than for looking at. Morrison's text style is exclamatory and didactic, suitable for reading aloud at a sermon, perhaps. Kiefer's illustrations are block-cut graphics. This title covers a wider range of Kamehameha's life, and has useful appendices. A handy little guide, with a useful introduction.
"Hawaii at Play -- Images of a Bygone Era" by DeSoto Brown (Watermark, $19.95)
I wish Brown would pump out more of these titles featuring his incredible collection of paper Hawaiian ephemera -- I'd go for a monthly fix.
In this volume, Brown's collection yields charming, funny and hip depictions of Hawaii surfing, drinking, nightclubbing, going to the movies, anything but working. You'll experience instant flashbacks on some of these items (depending on how old you are and how your memory is holding up), and the others are a treat for anyone enchanted by Hawaiian pop culture and by commercial design in general.
This is a happy treat all the way through, and should be the book everyone gives this Christmas. It's a bit jarring, however, to see a couple of items from the 1980s as being from a "bygone era."
"Dancing the Wave -- Audacity, Equilibrium and other Mysteries of Surfing" by Jean-Etienne Poirier (Shambhala, $12.95)
Reading about surfing? This philosophical treatise on the lure of wave riding is thoughtful, provoking and well-reasoned. Although it's a little precious at times, it's at least different, and surfing, frankly, is not written about nearly enough.
"Then There Were None" by Martha Noyes (Bess Press, $10.95) Another terrific little book, this is the companion volume to Noye's work on the documentary film of the same name by Elizabeth Kapu'uwailani Lindsey Buyers. Like the film, about the slow extinction of Hawaiians as a race, this is a work of rare power, with incredibly well-chosen words and images that build inexorably on your emotions. Extraordinary and sad.
"Ola -- Hawaiian Memories" by Linda Ching (Linda Ching Productions)
Essentially an update of her 1994 "memory book," this volume also contains Ching's colorful photographs, inspirational notions and pages to write down your thoughts. This is a very attractive book, and the epitome of a keepsake.
"Loyal to the Land -- The Legendary Parker Ranch, 750-1950" by Dr. Billy Bergin (University of Hawai'i Press, $38)
As indicated by the time range in the title, this scholarly work begins in the mists of prehistory and concludes before most of us were born. But the meat of the title is its survey of Hawaiian cattle ranching during the 1800s, and it contains extraordinary detail.
Bergin, the ranch's veterinarian for more than 25 years, approaches the subject with the objective eye of a scientist and anthropologist. A must-have for armchair paniolos.
"The Great Hawai'i Sports Journal -- A Photographic Essay" by Kirk Lee Aeder (Island Heritage, $19.95)
Aeder's professed passion is shooting windsurfing, but that hasn't stopped him from recording all aspects of Hawaii sports in crisp, colorful photographs. Well-printed in the Island Heritage style, Aeder also writes well, and the book is concisely edited by Star-Bulletin sports columnist Kalani Simpson. Keep it on your coffee table, and that's not an insult -- you'll be picking it up a lot and browsing.
STAR-BULLETIN PHOTOS
Winners of the 2003 Ka Palapala Po'okela Book Awards include Stuart Coleman, for "Eddie Would Go,"...
STAR-BULLETIN PHOTOS
...Don Severson and Michael Hirokawa, left, for "Finding Paradise: Island Art in Public Collections"...
STAR-BULLETIN PHOTOS
...and Cedric Yamanaka, above, for "In Good Company."
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Fill out gift list with
award-winning books
The 2003 Ka Palapala Po'okela Awards winner's list turns up several titles worth sharing as holiday gifts. Here is another look at the winners announced in October:
GENERAL CATEGORIES
CHILDREN'S HAWAIIAN CULTURE
Award of Excellence: "Hawaiian Legends of the Guardian Spirits" by Caren Loebel-Fried (University of Hawai'i Press)
Honorable Mention: "Ho'omalamalama: A Hawaiian Language Primer" by Kimo Armitage and Keli'i Ki'ilehua, illustrated by Michael Furuya (Island Heritage Publishing)
CHILDREN'S ILLUSTRATIVE/PHOTO
Award of Excellence: "Fables from the Deep" by Leslie Ann Hayashi, illustrated by Kathleen Wong Bishop (Mutual Publishing)
Honorable Mention: "Ten Days in Hawaii" by Dr. Carolan, illustrated by Joanna F. Carolan (Banana Patch Press)CHILDREN'S FICTION/NONFICTION
Award of Excellence: "Lullaby Moon" by Elaine Masters, illustrated by Tammy Yee, music and lyrics by Malia (Island Heritage)
Honorable Mention: "The Tale of Rabbit" by Patrick Ching (Island Heritage)LITERATURE
Award of Excellence: "Island Fire: An Anthology of Literature From Hawai'i" edited by Cheryl A. Harstad and James R. Harstad (Curriculum Research & Development Group and University of Hawai'i Press)
Honorable Mention: "In Good Company" by Cedric Yamanaka (University of Hawai'i)GENERAL HAWAIIAN CULTURE
Award of Excellence: "Dismembering Lahui: A History of the Hawaiian Nation to 1887" by Jonathan Kay Kamakawiwo'ole Osorio (University of Hawai'i)
Honorable Mention (tie): "Kapi'olani Park: A History" by Robert R. Weyeneth and MacKinnon Simpson (Kapi'olani Park Preservation Society) and "Ke Aupuni Mo'i" by Samuel Manaiakalani Kamakau (Kamehameha Schools Press)GENERAL ILLUSTRATIVE/PHOTO
Award of Excellence: "Finding Paradise: Island Art in Private Collections" by Don R. Severson, Michael D. Horikawa and Jennifer Saville (Honolulu Academy of Arts)
Honorable Mention: "Molokini: Hawai'i's Island Marine Sanctuary" by Mike Severns and Pauline Fiene (Island Heritage)NATURAL SCIENCE
Award of Excellence: "Hawaiian Natural History, Ecology and Evolution" by Alan C. Ziegler (University of Hawai'i)
Honorable Mention: "Sharks and Rays of Hawai'i" by Gerald L. Crow and Jennifer Crites (Mutual)TEXT OR REFERENCE BOOKS
Award of Excellence: "Hawai'i Place Names: Shores, Beaches and Surf Sites" by John R. K. Clark (University of Hawai'i)
Honorable Mention: "Hawaiian Natural History, Ecology and Evolution" by Alan C. Ziegler (University of Hawai'i)COOKBOOKS
Award of Excellence: "Chefs of Aloha" (Island Heritage)
Honorable Mention: "Kona on My Plate: A Hawai'i Community Cookbook" (Kona Outdoor Circle Foundation)SPECIAL-INTEREST
Award of Excellence: "The Art of the Aloha Shirt" by DeSoto Brown and Linda Arthur (Island Heritage)
Honorable Mention: "At the Cutting Edge: Contemporary Hawaiian Quilting" by Linda Arthur (Island Heritage)NONFICTION
Award of Excellence: "Dismembering Lahui: A History of the Hawaiian Nation to 1887" by Jonathan Kay Kamakawiwo'ole Osorio (University of Hawai'i)
Honorable Mention: "Eddie Would Go: The Story of Eddie Aikau, Hawaiian Hero," by Stuart Holmes Coleman (Mind Raising Press)"ALOHA FROM BEYOND HAWAI'I"
Award of Excellence: "Women of Hawai'i" by Pegge Hopper (Ten Speed Press)
Honorable Mention: "The Money Dragon" by Pam Chun (Sourcebooks Inc.)
TECHNICAL CATEGORIES
PRODUCTION
Award of Excellence: Barbara Pope and Maureen Liu-Brower, "Finding Paradise: Island Art in Private Collections" (Honolulu Academy of Arts with University of Hawai'i Press)
Honorable Mention: JoAnn Tenorio, Lucille Aono and Caren Loebel-Fried, "Hawaiian Legends of the Guardian Spirits" (University of Hawai'i Press)ILLUSTRATION
Award of Excellence: Caren Loebel-Fried, "Hawaiian Legends of the Guardian Spirits" (University of Hawai'i Press)
Honorable Mention: Michael Furuya, "Ho'omalamalama: A Hawaiian Language Primer" (Island Heritage)PHOTOGRAPHY
Award of Excellence: Douglas Peebles, "Kaua'i" (Mutual)
Honorable Mention: Mike Severns, "Molokini: Hawai'i's Island Marine Sanctuary" (Island Heritage)DESIGN
Award of Excellence: Barbara Pope, "Doris Duke's Shangri La" (Honolulu Academy of Arts)
Honorable Mention: Sunny Pau'ole, "Kona on My Plate: A Hawai'i Community Cookbook" (Kona Outdoor Circle Foundation)WRITING LITERATURE
Award of Excellence: Robert Barclay, "Melal" (University of Hawai'i Press)
Honorable Mention: Cedric Yamanaka, "In Good Company" (University of Hawai'i Press)WRITING NONFICTION
Award of Excellence: Stuart Holmes Coleman, "Eddie Would Go: The Story of Eddie Aikau, Hawaiian Hero" (MindRaising Press)
Honorable Mention: John R. K. Clark, "Hawai'i Place Names: Shores, Beaches, and Surf Sites" (University of Hawai'i Press)
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