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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
Sarah Vowell, whose voice for both speaking and writing is familiar from "This American Life," takes on Hawaii, religion and American imperialism in a very interesting and quirky book. My knowledge of Hawaii is limited to James Michener's novel and the movie based upon it, and I caught some familiar threads (since Michener is also hard on the missionaries!). Vowell quotes a lot of sources, and at times I was not sure which was which. But she's a good reporter on the whole, and her own experience of going to Hawaii to work on the book becomes part of the story. I recommend it if you're interested in Hawaii or American History or New England missionaries.
I adore Sarah Vowell, (to the point where I have imagined us hanging out together). She usually makes history way more interesting than I would have thought.
That being said, while I learned some things from this book (the history of Hawaii being one of many subjects I know nothing about), I don't feel like this was necessarily her best work. It was fine, but neither as funny nor as engrossing as some of her others. So...if this one didn't grab you, try one of her others ([b:Assassination Vacation|3110|Assassination Vacation|Sarah Vowell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1162323680s/3110.jpg|824686], maybe) before you dismiss her completely.
That being said, while I learned some things from this book (the history of Hawaii being one of many subjects I know nothing about), I don't feel like this was necessarily her best work. It was fine, but neither as funny nor as engrossing as some of her others. So...if this one didn't grab you, try one of her others ([b:Assassination Vacation|3110|Assassination Vacation|Sarah Vowell|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1162323680s/3110.jpg|824686], maybe) before you dismiss her completely.
I have read nearly everything that [a:Sarah Vowell|2122|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1297911965p2/2122.jpg] has written (just have to get to[b:Take the Cannoli|12357|Take the Cannoli|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1166501351s/12357.jpg|748402] and [b:Radio On: A Listener's Diary|1383860|Radio On A Listener's Diary|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1183149151s/1383860.jpg|14663]).
The last book of hers that I read was [b:The Wordy Shipmates|8093917|The Wordy Shipmates|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1356092618s/8093917.jpg|3093704], and I didn't really connect with it the way that I had with everything else that I had read. As I think most other people have noted, what makes Vowell's books so enjoyable and interesting are her personal interjections and insights, and I think that there was maybe a little less of that in The Wordy Shipmates.
[b:Unfamiliar Fishes|10961250|Unfamiliar Fishes|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1315281461s/10961250.jpg|13594625], on the other hand, seems to strike a better balance of historical, factual writing and personal interjections. The story is maybe the same as Wordy Shipmates: people come over from another land citing religion as an excuse for their inexcusable (to say the least) behavior. People violently destroying a land and its people in the name of "saving them." This story goes right up to modern times and is still relevant today as it was when Hawaii first experienced the haole coming to their land, unwelcomed.
It's amazing, as Vowell points out, how we never seem to learn from our mistakes. Either for the sake of "saving people" (a frame of mind that persists to this day) or for the sake of our own military's interest (another frame of mind that persists to this day, and another way of looking at "saving people"). It's heartbreaking to learn of the ways that America has worked toward the government's best interest against the will of it's own people and the people of other nations. This is a bit more of a powerful book than any of Vowell's previous writing, and I think that is worth reading.
The last book of hers that I read was [b:The Wordy Shipmates|8093917|The Wordy Shipmates|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1356092618s/8093917.jpg|3093704], and I didn't really connect with it the way that I had with everything else that I had read. As I think most other people have noted, what makes Vowell's books so enjoyable and interesting are her personal interjections and insights, and I think that there was maybe a little less of that in The Wordy Shipmates.
[b:Unfamiliar Fishes|10961250|Unfamiliar Fishes|Sarah Vowell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1315281461s/10961250.jpg|13594625], on the other hand, seems to strike a better balance of historical, factual writing and personal interjections. The story is maybe the same as Wordy Shipmates: people come over from another land citing religion as an excuse for their inexcusable (to say the least) behavior. People violently destroying a land and its people in the name of "saving them." This story goes right up to modern times and is still relevant today as it was when Hawaii first experienced the haole coming to their land, unwelcomed.
It's amazing, as Vowell points out, how we never seem to learn from our mistakes. Either for the sake of "saving people" (a frame of mind that persists to this day) or for the sake of our own military's interest (another frame of mind that persists to this day, and another way of looking at "saving people"). It's heartbreaking to learn of the ways that America has worked toward the government's best interest against the will of it's own people and the people of other nations. This is a bit more of a powerful book than any of Vowell's previous writing, and I think that is worth reading.
An interesting narrative on the history of Hawaii and the United States' process of "annexing" the islands and removing the monarchy. Sarah Vowell does a good job of exploring the many sides of the issue and tells the history through stories and personal anecdotes.
I'm going to agree with Stef on this one and say it's really a 3.5 star book. I'm leaning towards the 4-star point because of the interesting subject matter.
Getting away from her prior book which was immensely dull, this one focuses on the history of how Hawaii went from being a group of self-governed kingdoms to eventually being annexed by the United States. I appreciate that Vowell expresses her opinions strongly, but shows that there are several sides to each argument, and does not excuse certain Hawaiian kings who were complicit in the destruction of the monarchy.
Vowell still has issues with tangents, where she veers off to talk about a seemingly random subject for several pages before returning to the main narrative. Sometimes that's interesting, but the rest are just a distraction. I also worried she was going back to the previous book too much with the discussion of Puritans and missionaries in New England, but I remembered enough of that to skim those pages, and she fortunately got back to the main topic quickly.
I'm glad I read this and learned more about Hawaii, but it seems like there's much more to learn. I may peruse the bibliography for suggestions.
Getting away from her prior book which was immensely dull, this one focuses on the history of how Hawaii went from being a group of self-governed kingdoms to eventually being annexed by the United States. I appreciate that Vowell expresses her opinions strongly, but shows that there are several sides to each argument, and does not excuse certain Hawaiian kings who were complicit in the destruction of the monarchy.
Vowell still has issues with tangents, where she veers off to talk about a seemingly random subject for several pages before returning to the main narrative. Sometimes that's interesting, but the rest are just a distraction. I also worried she was going back to the previous book too much with the discussion of Puritans and missionaries in New England, but I remembered enough of that to skim those pages, and she fortunately got back to the main topic quickly.
I'm glad I read this and learned more about Hawaii, but it seems like there's much more to learn. I may peruse the bibliography for suggestions.
I read this book on the history of missionary occupation and the annexation of Hawaii while tanning on the beaches of St. Croix, another bright island with a dark history of imperialism. I was pulled in by the witty and relaxed writing style of the author.
But, I began to lose a bit of steam around 70 pages in. Where is this going? Have I even finished Chapter One yet? Wait, are there chapters? Oh my god, there are no chapters. How can this be?
My mom put it well (oh yeah, I stole this book off my mom’s book club list): “this book is like a run on sentence.” It just goes on, it’s a bit confusing, and it doesn’t have much organization (it was mostly chronological, but not entirely). She hated it, didn’t finish. I didn’t mind it.
I am glad the author toned back the sarcasm and snarky side commentary as the book went on, because while it was entertaining in the beginning, it would have gotten old/inappropriate as the book continued.
Ultimately, I finished this book feeling like I know a bit more about one major period of Hawaii's history. But I don’t know if I could really summarize the historical events that went down, since I found the overall book confusing to follow.
But, I began to lose a bit of steam around 70 pages in. Where is this going? Have I even finished Chapter One yet? Wait, are there chapters? Oh my god, there are no chapters. How can this be?
My mom put it well (oh yeah, I stole this book off my mom’s book club list): “this book is like a run on sentence.” It just goes on, it’s a bit confusing, and it doesn’t have much organization (it was mostly chronological, but not entirely). She hated it, didn’t finish. I didn’t mind it.
I am glad the author toned back the sarcasm and snarky side commentary as the book went on, because while it was entertaining in the beginning, it would have gotten old/inappropriate as the book continued.
Ultimately, I finished this book feeling like I know a bit more about one major period of Hawaii's history. But I don’t know if I could really summarize the historical events that went down, since I found the overall book confusing to follow.
I don’t know why I have not included this book in Goodreads before, because I think this was my fifth time through this text, either in print or on audio. Listening to Sarah Vowell feels like having a dear, brilliant, and obsessive friend walk me through a corner of history, particularly a corner that’s dusty with neglect and popular indifference. I’ve learned so much from this little volume, and it’s become the plate-lunch-comfort-food of audiobooks for me.
This was my first Sarah Vowell book, and I really enjoyed it. She tells history in a natural, engaging way - we go from missionaries, to sailors, to capitalist-revolutionaries and American empire, with lots of interesting anecdotal asides and first-hand impressions along the way. I'll definitely be reading more of her work, but I think I'll skip the audios - I never did quite reconcile myself to her voice, hard as I tried.
If tales of white conquest, missionary arrogance, and manifest destiny frustrate you, take 3 xanax before reading.
Worth a read before a trip to Hawaii, esp if you're from mainland US, to keep you humble.
Worth a read before a trip to Hawaii, esp if you're from mainland US, to keep you humble.
I stopped reading this a little bit in. I couldn't handle the fact that there were no chapters! I need a stopping place, especially when reading a nonfiction book like this one.