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Isle Pages

New releases from
Hawaii authors

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CORRECTION Tuesday, September 28, 2004 » Author Brandon Wilson's Tibet journey covered a 1,000-kilometer trail, not 100 kilometers as reported in a brief review of his book "Yak Butter Blues: A Tibetan Trek of Faith," on Page G17 of Sunday's Mauka Makai. The book's publisher is Heliographica, not Heliographic. The Honolulu Star-Bulletin strives to make its news report fair and accurate. If you have a question or comment about news coverage, call Editor Frank Bridgewater at 529-4791 or email him at corrections@starbulletin.com.

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"Aloha 'Oe -- The Song Heard Around the World" by Leslie Ann Hayashi, illustrated by Kathleen Wong Bishop (Mutual, $14.95) Certainly, one of the reasons Hawaiian royalty are so fondly remembered today is because they tended to be people of talent and accomplishment -- politicians, writers, inventors, interior decorators, musicians and songwriters -- even by the parlor-room standards of the 19th century. Lydia Lili'u Loloku Kamaka'eha Paki Dominis, whom we know as the deposed Queen Lili'uokalani, received musical training as a child, and luckily as an adult, was able to formalize the melodies in her head with the aid of European-born royal bandmaster Henry Berger. The haunting song of the title became the first world-wide pop hit out of Hawaii, and this well-illustrated little book for young adults traces the song's history. Curiously, Queen Lili'uokalani is referred to in the book primarily as Lydia, and not named at all on the book's dustcover.

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"Seashore Touch-n-See Hawai'i" by Ellie Crowe, illustrated by Yuko Green (Island Heritage, $8.99) Crowe's well-chosen words sing almost like haiku and Green's pastel illustrations are charming. But the main appeal of this hands-on book for the very young are the various textures embedded in the thick pages. The sandy shore feels like sandpaper!

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"Yak Butter Blues: A Tibetan Trek of Faith" by Brandon Wilson ( Heliographic, $16.98) Maui resident Wilson and wife Cheryl trekked a hundred kilometers along a thin-air pilgrimage trail in Tibet. It wasn't easy! This print-on-demand account of their journey is vivid and engaging.

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"Get a Life" by John Werrill (Vanguard, $16.21) The price seems odd because it's translated from British pounds. Honolulu resident and raconteur Werrill's autobiography comes from England's print-on-demand Vanguard Press. Whatever the provenance, this is a breezy, arch account of Werrill's life at sea as a master chef and his adventures ashore as a skirt-chasing libertine. Werrill is the sort of bloke, who, sitting at your elbow and lifting pints, keeps you entertained all night.