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3.99 AVERAGE
3.99 AVERAGE
This is a 5 star book, but the length is a bit much. I thought my Kindle was broken when I turned it on and it said it would take 49 hours to finish. I really had to invest time in this book and read an alternate book after I finished each chapter just so I could let it all soak in and appreciate the history.
Chapter 1 is a boring geography and evolution lesson that could have been accomplished in a couple of pages. But if you can force yourself to make it through Chapter 1 (or skip it all together) you will not be disappointed. Chapter 2 starts out a little slow with how the people of Bora Bora came to the decision to find the islands. You will easily pick up on where the hula and some of the uniqueness of Hawaii began. But then we get to Chapter 3 (the missionaries) you will be disgusted and appalled and amazed at the same time. You will want to kick and shake that little Abner Hale. But you will have a great appreciation for what they gave up and what they accomplished. Chapter 4 (the Chinese) is my favorite chapter. It starts slow, but is wonderful as soon as it gets to Nyuk Tsin. The Chinese truly saved the Hawaiian people and made them stronger simply by breeding with them. Chapter 5 (the Japanese) tells the narrative of how the Japanese came to be the leaders of the island. And Chapter 6 is about the Golden Man -- when east meets west meets Hawaiian culture. The entire time I read this book, I had to remind myself that this was historical fiction. The book is extremely accurate and the main characters were based on real people of history, although perhaps embellished.
This book will take you on a journey of exploration and discovery, inbreeding, leprosy, the plague, the crazy method how Chinese name their children and support families, immigrant workers, the mistreatment of Japanese post Pearl Harbor bombing, labor unions, the rise of democracy, and annexation to the US. It paints a very colored history of a place most of us view as simply a vacation destination.
Chapter 1 is a boring geography and evolution lesson that could have been accomplished in a couple of pages. But if you can force yourself to make it through Chapter 1 (or skip it all together) you will not be disappointed. Chapter 2 starts out a little slow with how the people of Bora Bora came to the decision to find the islands. You will easily pick up on where the hula and some of the uniqueness of Hawaii began. But then we get to Chapter 3 (the missionaries) you will be disgusted and appalled and amazed at the same time. You will want to kick and shake that little Abner Hale. But you will have a great appreciation for what they gave up and what they accomplished. Chapter 4 (the Chinese) is my favorite chapter. It starts slow, but is wonderful as soon as it gets to Nyuk Tsin. The Chinese truly saved the Hawaiian people and made them stronger simply by breeding with them. Chapter 5 (the Japanese) tells the narrative of how the Japanese came to be the leaders of the island. And Chapter 6 is about the Golden Man -- when east meets west meets Hawaiian culture. The entire time I read this book, I had to remind myself that this was historical fiction. The book is extremely accurate and the main characters were based on real people of history, although perhaps embellished.
This book will take you on a journey of exploration and discovery, inbreeding, leprosy, the plague, the crazy method how Chinese name their children and support families, immigrant workers, the mistreatment of Japanese post Pearl Harbor bombing, labor unions, the rise of democracy, and annexation to the US. It paints a very colored history of a place most of us view as simply a vacation destination.
This book was one of the most interesting books I have ever read. I love history but never go for historical fiction but James Michener may have changed my mind on the subject. I read this 1000 page book throughout a month in Hawaii and was shocked at how accurately the historical events lined up with things I was learning through my own research while there. Every so often I would look up a character or event in this book to see who or what it was based on and there was often a real-life counterpart. The locations, foods, and words could have just been background noise but they all meant so much more while living them. It’s incredible that the author was able to mostly accurately amass these ideas into a novel this long and this addicting. I could see how without a tie to Hawaii this book could be lost on someone but for me it’s an easy five stars.
adventurous
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
After what felt like half my life, I finally finished. It was long, it dragged by in parts, and the ending was just eh, but you have to give the man 4 stars just for writing the thing in the first place. Also, I can't read a thousand pages and not rate it above 3 stars or else why I'm the world did I keep reading it? As someone who just moved to hawaii, I really appreciated the history and culture presented in the book. While I would have liked to see more about some stuff basic to Hawaii (like the wars between islands, or the last monarchy) and less about the missionaries, I get that there is only so much space and time. Too bad there isn't a part 2 to take us from the 50s to today.
So this is a mighty work of fiction based on a lot of research. I wanted to read this since we are traveling to Hawaii this summer, and now I’m intrigued as to just how much is based on fact. The storytelling is beautiful, and I only found myself losing track of the many characters and generations a couple of times (as happens with epics). On the whole though, it was just a fascinating read. It was interesting to learn about what the Christian missionaries were like and how the Hawaiians responded along with the Asian cultures that also came to Hawaii. Reading about the Japanese Hawaiian characters during Pearl Harbor was also interesting and my guess is, fairly accurate.
I did it! All 52 hours of it! And I pretty much liked it. I think my biggest complaint is that because so much is just told like a story and there were a lot of generational names, it was difficult to fully know what time period or exact year we were talking about. But overall I thought this was really interesting and I did like how it started from the VERY beginning. After I have a little break I do think I'll be diving into the one other Michener audiobook available at the library.
Excellent book, a fun sprawling epic read. Perfect for reading on vacation in Hawaii. The book is sort of ridiculously epic and long and a bit potboilery. It also occupies that uncomfortable part of historical fiction where it's easy to confuse the narrative fiction for historical fact. But it's a lot of fun. The book is intensely Americana, heavily relying on themes of the melting pot vs. fighting against racist injustice. It's a lot of fun. I'd love to read the same book written by a woman and told from a feminine perspective.
adventurous
informative
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Great historical fiction about Hawaii. I learned so much. Worth the 950 page effort!!