‘The Fish’ wins book of year award

Winners of the 2005 Ka Palapala Po'okela book awards were announced last night in a ceremony at the Honolulu Civic Center.

The awards from the Hawai'i Book Publishers Association recognize the top books published in the last year.

The Samuel M. Kamakau trophy for Hawai'i Book of the Year went to Kamehameha Schools Press for "The Fish and Their Gifts/Nâ Makana a Nâ I'a," written in English by Joshua Kaiponohea Stender and translated into Hawaiian by the Kamehameha Schools staff. Stender and the nine illustrators produced the book work while students in Kanu o ka 'Aina New Century Public Charter School in Waimea on the Big Island.

The John Dominis Holt Award for lifetime contribution to local publishing when to historian Gavan Daws, author of the classic "Shoal of Time."

The winners:

Children's Hawaiian Culture

Award of Excellence: "The Shark Man of Hâna," by U'ilani Goldsberry, Hawaiian translation by David Del Rocco, illustrated by Roy Chang (BeachHouse Publishing)

Honorable Mention: "The Fish and Their Gifts/Nâ Makana a Nâ I'a," by Joshua Kaiponohea Stender (Kamehameha Schools Press)

Children's Illustrated

Award of Excellence: "Mr. Miyataki's Marvelous Machine," by Tandy Newsome, illustrated by Don Robinson (Island Heritage)

Honorable Mention: "The Fish and Their Gifts/Nâ Makana a Nâ I'a"

Excellence in Children's Books

Award of Excellence: "The Fish and Their Gifts/Nâ Makana a Nâ I'a"

Honorable Mention: "Mr. Miyataki's Marvelous Machine"

Literature

Award of Excellence: "Ho'olulu Park and the Pepsodent Smile and Other Stories," by Juliet S. Kono (Bamboo Ridge)

Honorable Mention: "Children of a Fireland," by Gary Pak (University of Hawai'i)

General Hawaiian Culture

Award of Excellence: "Hawaiian Son: The Life and Music of Eddie Kamae," by James D. Houston with Eddie Kamae ('Ai Pôhaku)

Honorable Mention: "Kû'ç: Thirty Years of Land Struggles in Hawai'i," by Haunani-Kay Trask, photographic essay by Ed Greevy (Mutual)

Illustrative or Photographic

Award of Excellence: "Volcano: Creation in Motion," by Jim Kauahikaua, photography by G. Brad Lewis (Mutual)

Honorable Mention: "Kû'ç: Thirty Years of Land Struggles in Hawai'i"

Natural Science

Award of Excellence: "Sea Turtles: An Ecological Guide," by David Gulko and Karen Eckert (Mutual)

Honorable Mention: "Hawai'i's Native Plants," by Bruce A. Bohm (Mutual)

Text or Reference

Award of Excellence: "Kokoro: Cherished Japanese Traditions in Hawai'i," compiled by the Japanese Women's Society of Honolulu (Japanese Women's Society Foundation)

Honorable Mention: "Sea Turtles: An Ecological Guide"

Cookbooks

Award of Excellence: "Hawai'i's Home Cooking: Local Recipes from Alu Like's Kûpuna," edited by Elizabeth Meahl (Mutual)

Honorable Mention: "Hawai'i Light and Healthy," by Diana Helfand (Bess)

Special Interest

Award of Excellence: "The 50 Greatest Hawai'i Albums," by Ronna Bolante and Michael Keany (Watermark)

Honorable Mention: "Tons of Things to Do for Hawai'i's Kids," by Carrie Ching, illustrated by Lance Bowen (BeachHouse)

Nonfiction

Award of Excellence: "Hawaiian Son: The Life and Music of Eddie Kamae"

Honorable Mention: "Next Stop Honolulu!: The Story of Oahu Railway & Land Company," by Jim Chiddix and MacKinnon Simpson (Sugar Cane Press)

Aloha from Beyond Hawai'i

Award of Excellence: "When Strange Gods Call," by Pam Chun (Sourcebooks)

Honorable Mention: "Popoki The Hawaiian Cat," by Diana C. Gleasner, illustrated by Andrea Winton (Peninsula)

Technical categories:

Production

Award of Excellence: Richard Lyday, "Mapping the Lands and Waters of Hawai'i" (Editions Limited)

Honorable Mention: Wanni Cheung, "Things Hawai'i" (Mutual)

Illustration

Award of Excellence: Alexa Mokukea Bate, Leianna Eads, Leigh Frizzell IV, Pua Herron-Whitehead, Knyaston Kaikâ Lindsey, Matt Nu'uanu Kakalia, Nâpua Keopuhiwa, Kina'u Puhi and Punahele Svendsen, "The Fish and Their Gifts/Nâ Makana a Nâ I'a"

Honorable Mention: Don Robinson, "Mr. Miyataki's Marvelous Machine"

Photography

Award of Excellence: G. Brad Lewis, "Volcano: Creation in Motion"

Honorable Mention: Ed Greevy, Kû'ç: Thirty Years of Land Struggles in Hawai'i"

Design

Award of Excellence: Jim Wageman, "A Literary Lei: Flowers & Plants of Hawai'i"

Honorable Mention: Carol Colbath, "The Spirit of Hula" (Bess)

Writing Literature

Award of Excellence: Juliet S. Kono, "Ho'olulu Park and the Pepsodent Smile"

Honorable Mention: Gary Pak, "Children of a Fireland"

Writing Nonfiction

Award of Excellence: James D. Houston with Eddie Kamae, "Hawaiian Son: The Life and Music of Eddie Kamae"

Honorable Mention: Rosa Say, "Managing with Aloha: Bringing Hawaii's Universal Values to the Art of Business" (Ho'ohana)