Reviews with content warning for Grief - Sharks in the Time of Saviors

I saw this author speak alongside the author of How Much of These Hills is Gold at a literature festival last year and was really interested in what he had to say (he also liked one of my tweets so he's clearly a good guy...). My high hopes were satisfied (as was the case with that other novel, too).

This is a really soulful book. It explores our relationship with nature, with our traditions and heritage, and how this is changing in the 21st century. I have never been to Hawai'i and had a limited knowledge of cultural traditions there before reading this book. I knew about ukulele and lei but nothing of the history and mythology of the islands and their people. This is kind of the point - Washburn wants to joyfully share the 'authentic' Hawai'i with us, the one beyond the surf bars and volcano treks for tourists, and I lapped it up. I enjoyed looking up some of the language and customs mentioned - especially as they hold such power (can't forget those ancient hula performances I watched on YouTube in a hurry). I always like learning things about another culture or country from novels, I find it really enriching.

There are elements of magical realism and fantasy woven through the story, as the family of characters grapples with the island's evocative ancestral history. I can sometimes find mystical aspects like this a bit jarring (try as I might, I just could not get swept away by One Hundred Years of Solitude...) but Washburn handles this smoothly, I think because his characters are both sceptical and dry-humoured, and open-minded to the spiritual forces they clearly experience. This is a family that feels very real in all its petty squabbles, tense dynamics, and gritty quest for survival, and this grounds the loftier elements of the plot. There is also a very visceral sense of the earth in the narrative. The beauty and danger of Mother Nature (Pele in this case), and the perils of losing our connection to her, are wrapped around the dialogue and action like a creeping vine.

I have to say that I didn't believe Noa was actually dead for a long time after the scene of his fall. I kept thinking he must be coming back, surely it was leading there, especially as his gift had seemed to be getting more potent? I liked how my expectations were subverted there. I assumed we'd get a resurrection of sorts - and in a way we did, but via some of the other family members, who finally got their own individual moments of fulfilment.

This is an impressive debut novel and would definitely look out for more from him in future.

Content Warnings

mitone_winona's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging emotional funny reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

First thing about this book, it does a beautiful example of combining magical realism with the realities of being in the modern times as well as combining the culture of Hawaii into a twist that I understand deeply as someone who is indigenous in America. Not only does the book deal with magical realism and how it affects the family, but its understandable in a way that is very modern and I believe relatable even if the book wasn't about the current things going on with Noa, who is a pseudo centerpiece that is surrounded and switched out by his family member's perspective of how they view Noa and the affect of their parents on the 3 children as well as Noa's existence being exceptionally amazing, he is still a young man who grew up overly praised rather than seen as a boy and a human.

This book is so natural and real with how it goes over being siblings in a challenging dynamic, being successful in a way that matters so much to you and your parents, and the consequences of reality on those goals and aspirations. Each sibling is very unique in both struggles and goals they all wish to achieve.

This book is so natural and realistic in a way that makes you cheer on even if the moment is tense. You want these characters to thrive and continue on. I highly suggest you read this book if you like magical realism combined with TRUE reality that intertwines both amazingly.

Content Warnings

usedtotheweather's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful informative mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

kayleyhyde's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional hopeful reflective sad tense fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Content Warnings

kaiulanilee's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny mysterious reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book was absolutely stunning in so many ways.
Particularly the way it wove language into beautiful but sometimes very jarring sentences and the way the author was able to capture the distinct personalities and thoughts of each character with the way he wrote their chapters was brilliant. This is an absolutely brilliant story about family, resilience, Hawaiian mythology, and our connection to the world around us and I would highly recommend it to anyone.

Content Warnings

bookmarkie's review against another edition

Go to review page

emotional inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Content Warnings

bootsmom3's review against another edition

Go to review page

challenging dark emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Content Warnings

More...