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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
This was interesting and generally entertaining but I did not love it like I thought I would - or as much as other books by Sarah Vowell. I knew nothing about Hawaii when I started reading, and I do think I learned a little by the time I finished the book. (Yay!) The last quarter of the book felt sort of aimless, which is too bad, it kind of left a boring taste in my mouth when I know that the beginning and middle were much better than that.
I'll say 3.5 stars. Wasn't quite as into this one as I was The Wordy Shipmates or Assassination Vacation, but I think it was because I had less of a frame of reference for the subject upon starting the book. It was still really interesting and well-written, and I learned a lot about a span of history that I essentially knew nothing about.
I'd give it four-and-a-half stars if that were an option. As usual with Sarah Vowell, a fantastic read - looks like I have a lot more reading to do about Hawaii.
I really like listening to Sarah Vowell read her books and was inspired to get this audiobook from the library after attending an event with her this summer where she read some excerpts. The history of Hawaii is interesting but I had a hard time keeping all of the unfamiliar names and places straight, plus I don't think she wrote entirely chronologically which was confusing at times. I think this might be a better book to read and hopefully the printed version has a timeline and maybe a list of major historical characters. That said, I did learn quite a bit and have a better appreciation for Hawaii now.
Hawaii is definitely one of my very favorite places I've ever been, so I was looking forward to this book. There's great stuff in here for sure, but I feel like Sarah Vowell let the information get in the way of the story a little bit. It's really quite dense for such a short and seemingly casual book. In any case, it does make me want to redouble my efforts to take in more history next time I am in Hawaii (not that I know when that will be, but I hope it will be soon!). I focus my attention almost entirely on nature there and I forget to appreciate the history.
I get why people might not like this book, but I very much enjoyed it.
It's very possible that this is my least favorite Vowell because my background in Hawaiian history is basically zero. I still enjoyed the book immensely, as always, and loved Vowell's thoughtful commentary. Some of the comparisons were a bit more of a stretch, or weren't carried far enough, but it's a quibble, really. I appreciated that the Hawaiians in the story were read by authors of color, including Keanu Reeves who has Hawaiian ancestry. It was a horrifying but not surprising story, a worthwhile read if you've forgotten about our colonialist and proselytizing tendencies as a country.