Reviews

Hula by Jasmin Iolani Hakes

odesszaaa's review against another edition

emotional medium-paced

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

3.5

bgoodbookclub's review

challenging emotional tense medium-paced

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

4.0

As an American who knows very little about Hawaii, this should be required reading and I'm excited to dive into more Hawaiian books. This is a book about belonging, about Hawaii as a place and an entity, about complicated family relationships. 

I loved the multiple POV, the changing timelines, the Hawaiian history. This book started off very slow for me and it took a while for me to get into the story and also to get used to the Hawaiian language woven in, however, once I got into it, I was INTO it. 

This would be an amazing book club pick!

onegalonelife27's review against another edition

Is this extremely well written, a beautiful exploration on Hawaii exploitation on its people and culture, and how it effects one family through generations of women?Absolutely! I've been really enjoying it, fleshed out characters and deeply rich telling of the history of the Hawaiian Islands. However, decisions are being made and I'm not mentally or emotionally prepared for I what I predict happens-I'm just saving myself from the huge wave of second hand embarrassment, sympathy, fury and a whole lot more for what's coming. Don't think I can sit through traffic (I tend to listen to a lot of audiobooks on a commute I have) while this all goes down. Will try this book again, probably in another format. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism and Colonisation

Moderate: Bullying

Minor: Pregnancy

birdabouttown's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

Family dynamics, who counts as Hawaiian, the effects of colonization. Mother-daughter relations, generational trauma. So much interesting info about Hawaiian history and lore. Excellent audiobook

megs327's review

emotional reflective sad tense fast-paced

4.0

bea_reads_books's review

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad medium-paced

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

5.0

Hula is a story of family, of mothers and daughters, of falling apart and coming together again. It is a story about history, about the ways history affects us through our generations. It is a story of colonization, of a people forced to assimilate and commodify their cultural identity. It is about how that great violence tears apart whole people groups, but also how it breaks individual families. It is emotional and raw and painful, but also dares to be hopeful. I cried… a lot. 

jesslojo's review

4.0

Hula is richly packed with culture, and the history of Hawaii. It is a multigenerational saga from the point of view of three Naupaka women; Hulali, Laka and Hi’i. The dynamics of the relationships are both complicated and heartwarming at the same time. The history present in the novel was pretty dense and with the writing style made it difficult for me to really latch onto this novel and follow every word, but the storyline is truly beautiful.

It is definitely clear that Jasmin ʻIolani Hakes’ passion for Hawaii runs deep, her love and understanding for Hawaii bleeds into her writing.

Thank you to NetGalley, and HarperVia Publishing for the advanced readers copy!

quailtea's review

challenging emotional hopeful sad fast-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

4.75

so captivating and compelling, i couldn't put it down, beautiful interweaving of the interpersonal challenges with the colonialism ones, cheering on every character in their struggles. 

awebofstories's review

emotional informative sad medium-paced

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

3.0

gina_readsbooks's review

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense medium-paced

4.0

“We are not here for you. We were here before you came and will be here when you leave.”

Thank you to partner Bibliolifestyle and Harper Via Books for the gifted copy in exchange for an honest review!

This is a really beautiful story of family, tradition, and history that flows through three generations of women. There is a focus on relationships between mothers and daughters,  but also the history of Hawaii. It captures the rage and unrest of the Hawaiian people as their land and culture was stolen. The history provided throughout is so important, and it wasn’t something I knew anything about before. 

These characters are so fascinating, especially Hi’i, the youngest. She struggles with her identity as she doesn’t look the way she’s expected as a Hawaiian. But she so desperately wants to participate in hula and prove that she is just like her mom. There is so much rich culture and detail in this book, juxtaposed with this anger at the way their identities were appropriated. 

This is a really fascinating read, and it was so great to get to read something out of my comfort zone.