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A review by barnstormingbooks
Song of the Exile by Kiana Davenport
5.0
This is a book that is hard to describe. The story line was from Davenport’s childhood, told to her about a local Hawai’ian musician who lost his love in the war. The epic is all Davenport’s creation. Meticulously researched from both records and by winning the trust of survivors, the historical details are brutal in their honesty. There is also a magic to this book that feels authentically native Hawai’ian, adding to each of the proven facts.
Set in a changing world (and moving around the globe) this sweeping epic is undeniable and devastating. Set between the buildup to World War II through the creation of Hawaii as a state all told through the eyes of an extended native Hawai’ian family. The politics and prejudices are palpable and illuminating. The music is visceral. The characters are told with a loving poetry that draws out love even in moments of brutality.
The depictions of violence and war are harrowing. Davenport was clear with her intention here. She decided to use survivor accounts and stories as close to verbatim as she could as she within the confines of her story. Allowing accounts of extreme violence to be heard without publicizing the victims. This story of war is of bombs and horrific violence by men on men and by men on communities. However, at the center is violence against women. The Chongshindae (women kidnapped, enslaved, raped, brutalized, tortured, starved and often murdered by Japanese military) story line was so graphic and honest I became nauseous as I read it. There is a deep love for the women of Hawaii, but there is forced happy ending. Just a coming to terms, and a bit of revenge that is more satisfying then I want to admit.
Overall, this is a book and stories that need to be heard. However, check your trigger warnings and look at where you place it in your stack. After finishing I had to rearrange all my reading plans as I unpacked this experience.
Set in a changing world (and moving around the globe) this sweeping epic is undeniable and devastating. Set between the buildup to World War II through the creation of Hawaii as a state all told through the eyes of an extended native Hawai’ian family. The politics and prejudices are palpable and illuminating. The music is visceral. The characters are told with a loving poetry that draws out love even in moments of brutality.
The depictions of violence and war are harrowing. Davenport was clear with her intention here. She decided to use survivor accounts and stories as close to verbatim as she could as she within the confines of her story. Allowing accounts of extreme violence to be heard without publicizing the victims. This story of war is of bombs and horrific violence by men on men and by men on communities. However, at the center is violence against women. The Chongshindae (women kidnapped, enslaved, raped, brutalized, tortured, starved and often murdered by Japanese military) story line was so graphic and honest I became nauseous as I read it. There is a deep love for the women of Hawaii, but there is forced happy ending. Just a coming to terms, and a bit of revenge that is more satisfying then I want to admit.
Overall, this is a book and stories that need to be heard. However, check your trigger warnings and look at where you place it in your stack. After finishing I had to rearrange all my reading plans as I unpacked this experience.