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Chock, Eric, et al., Growing Up Local: An Anthology of Poetry and Prose from Hawai`i. Hawai`i: Bamboo Ridge Press (P.O. Box 61781, Honolulu, Hawai`i 96839), 1998. x, 382p. ISBN 0-910043-53-1 (pa), $15.00. Illus. Acid Free.
Bamboo Ridge Press, a small non-profit press, was founded in 1978 to perpetuate literature about Hawai`i and its people and offer a publishing venue for Hawai`i’s writers. Currently, two volumes are published each year. One publication is a literary journal focusing on poetry and fiction written by established and emerging writers, the second is on a book by a single author or an anthology with a specific theme. Growing Up Local: An Anthology of Poetry and Prose from Hawai`i is issue #72 of Bamboo Ridge, A Hawai`i Writers’ Journal (ISSN 0733-0308). This anthology includes works from established and emerging writers, as well as unpublished writers, who have poetically encapsulated the unique experiences of being local in Hawai`i.
Eric Chock is one of the founding editor-publishers of Bamboo Ridge. This poet, editor, and literary promoter is an instructor for the Humanities Department at the University of Hawai`i West O`ahu. Chock has also worked with the Department of Education as a coordinator/master teacher for the Poets in the Schools program. On occasion, he continues to hold workshops and graduate classes for students and educators on creative writing, manuscript writing, and pidgin literature.
What does it mean to be “local?” Featured author Alohi Ae’a, in her notes, states that the word “local” is a “word that covers all of us,” from the surfer to the construction worker pouring cement. This book sets out to portray the life of a local, the life that all of us who have ties to Hawai`i can relate to. The life of growing up local is depicted in poems, essays, and short stories from Honolulu’s Chinatown to Hilo, ranging in topics from rice to poi, and frequently written in the irreplaceable language that defines Hawai`i, Hawaiian Pidgin English. Hawai`i’s ethnic diversity is embraced through writings that depict the characteristics of different ethnic groups and the relationships that have been fostered between ethnicities. Established local authors including Darrell Lum (Sun, short stories and drama, Bamboo Ridge Press, 1980) and Lois-Ann Yamanaka (Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers, Harvest Books, 1997), along with forty-eight other writers, have made insightful contributions to the significance of growing up local in Hawai`i.
This anthology will be of great interest to kama`aina (local) and malihini (newcomer) alike. Its rich literature takes readers on a journey to uncover the true meaning of being local in Hawai`i. It is a time for reminiscing about growing up barefoot and getting lickens with the iron hanger by kama`aina and a chance for malihini to learn about Palolo and kimchee. Libraries outside of Hawai`i will find that this book provides a great resource for learning about Hawai`i’s rich culture. Each section in the anthology (Introduction, I, II, III, Afterword, Author’s Notes, Permissions) is preceded by mesmerizing black and white artwork created by local high school students from Hawai`i that visually creates its own unique stories, stimulating the senses of growing up local. Minor criticisms for this book include the setup of chapters and the lack of a glossary. Chapters I, II, and III are not defined by titles and leave the reader to wonder about connections and relationships between each literary work included within the chapter and anthology. This book also lacks a glossary that defines the local vernacular used in Hawai`i. This type of glossary would be helpful for readers not familiar with Hawaiian Pidgin English. Nonetheless, these are very minor flaws that do not negatively affect the book’s literary quality. Bamboo Ridge Press offers this “local” experience through an inexpensive yearly subscription or singly by journal or book.
Bamboo Ridge Press, a small non-profit press, was founded in 1978 to perpetuate literature about Hawai`i and its people and offer a publishing venue for Hawai`i’s writers. Currently, two volumes are published each year. One publication is a literary journal focusing on poetry and fiction written by established and emerging writers, the second is on a book by a single author or an anthology with a specific theme. Growing Up Local: An Anthology of Poetry and Prose from Hawai`i is issue #72 of Bamboo Ridge, A Hawai`i Writers’ Journal (ISSN 0733-0308). This anthology includes works from established and emerging writers, as well as unpublished writers, who have poetically encapsulated the unique experiences of being local in Hawai`i.
Eric Chock is one of the founding editor-publishers of Bamboo Ridge. This poet, editor, and literary promoter is an instructor for the Humanities Department at the University of Hawai`i West O`ahu. Chock has also worked with the Department of Education as a coordinator/master teacher for the Poets in the Schools program. On occasion, he continues to hold workshops and graduate classes for students and educators on creative writing, manuscript writing, and pidgin literature.
What does it mean to be “local?” Featured author Alohi Ae’a, in her notes, states that the word “local” is a “word that covers all of us,” from the surfer to the construction worker pouring cement. This book sets out to portray the life of a local, the life that all of us who have ties to Hawai`i can relate to. The life of growing up local is depicted in poems, essays, and short stories from Honolulu’s Chinatown to Hilo, ranging in topics from rice to poi, and frequently written in the irreplaceable language that defines Hawai`i, Hawaiian Pidgin English. Hawai`i’s ethnic diversity is embraced through writings that depict the characteristics of different ethnic groups and the relationships that have been fostered between ethnicities. Established local authors including Darrell Lum (Sun, short stories and drama, Bamboo Ridge Press, 1980) and Lois-Ann Yamanaka (Wild Meat and the Bully Burgers, Harvest Books, 1997), along with forty-eight other writers, have made insightful contributions to the significance of growing up local in Hawai`i.
This anthology will be of great interest to kama`aina (local) and malihini (newcomer) alike. Its rich literature takes readers on a journey to uncover the true meaning of being local in Hawai`i. It is a time for reminiscing about growing up barefoot and getting lickens with the iron hanger by kama`aina and a chance for malihini to learn about Palolo and kimchee. Libraries outside of Hawai`i will find that this book provides a great resource for learning about Hawai`i’s rich culture. Each section in the anthology (Introduction, I, II, III, Afterword, Author’s Notes, Permissions) is preceded by mesmerizing black and white artwork created by local high school students from Hawai`i that visually creates its own unique stories, stimulating the senses of growing up local. Minor criticisms for this book include the setup of chapters and the lack of a glossary. Chapters I, II, and III are not defined by titles and leave the reader to wonder about connections and relationships between each literary work included within the chapter and anthology. This book also lacks a glossary that defines the local vernacular used in Hawai`i. This type of glossary would be helpful for readers not familiar with Hawaiian Pidgin English. Nonetheless, these are very minor flaws that do not negatively affect the book’s literary quality. Bamboo Ridge Press offers this “local” experience through an inexpensive yearly subscription or singly by journal or book.
Reviewed by Mia Pereira, LIS Graduate Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa. Review submitted in April 2007.
