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1.5 Generation Korean Americans in Hawaii

Jinhe — Fri, 09 Oct 2009 09:31:44 CDT

DANICO, Mary Y., The 1.5 Generation: Becoming Korean American in Hawaii. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press; Los Angeles: In Association with UCLA Asian American Studies Center, 2004. Ⅹⅰⅴ, 221p. ISBN 0-8248-2695-7 (pa). $23.00. Index, Bib. Acid-Free.

The author, Mary Yu Danico, received her doctorate at University of Hawaii at Manoa and is an Associate Professor in the Psychology and Sociology Department at California State Polytechnic University Pomona. She wrote co-authored Asian American Issues for Greenwood Press’s. Contemporary U.S. Ethnic Issues Series.

The book ‘The 1.5 generation, becoming Korean American in Hawaii discusses how the Korean 1.5 generation in Hawaii identifies their ethnic identity and how this perception influences their personal and social life in the local community. The term 1.5 generation is a concept that is widely spread through out the Korean immigrant Diaspora. 1.5 generation indicates the young people who were born in Korea and immigrated to the United States at an early age. Unlike the first generation of immigrant, who regard their ethnic identity primarily as Koreans and the second generation who were born and raised in the United States, the 1.5 generation identifies with both cultures and associates with both groups. Hawaii is well known for the constitution of ethnic groups where the minority ethnic group becomes more popular than the mainland. Although sharing some common points with the 1.5ers who grow up in the mainland, the environment in Hawaii appears to be more tolerant and at the same time as an American for the 1.5 generation. The author notes that it is the environmental difference that lead her to study the 1.5 generations ethnic identity and social life in Hawaii.

The author, a Korean American who grew up in an upper-middle class community California, conducted the study as both an insider being a 1.5 generation herself and also as an outsider as not being a local in Hawaii. Danico conducted to formal and informal interviews-(both as an insider (1.5 generation Korean-American) and outsider (not from Hawaii). As the author notes this study gives a better understanding of the 1.5 Korean generations by observing their families and their family relationships, social status, social life, and ethnic identity development. The book includes an index and notes to help the reader with specific terms.

Although the study occasionally compares some parts of the difference between the 1.5 generation in Hawaii and from the mainland, it might have made the study more interesting and complete, if the author had time to compare two regional groups to give a more accurate understanding of the generation. This book will be a useful material to an academic library that serves scholars and students who are studying ethnic groups and also as a great introduction for those who are interested in the subject area.

Reviewed by Jinhe Kim, LIS student, University of Hawaii at Manoa. Review submitted in October 2009.

Return to Midway

DrDrewHonolulu — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:14:49 CDT

BALLARD, Robert D., Return to Midway: The quest to find the Yorktown and the other lost ships from the pivotal battle of the Pacific War. Washington, D.C.: National Geographic Press, 1999. 192 p. ISBN 0-7922-7500-4 (hc), $40. Bib. Illus (col).

This book is an excellent examination of the pivotal naval battle of World War 2 and the search for the remains of its ships. It follows the expedition led by Robert Ballard, famous for his discovery of the Titanic and Bismark on the ocean’s floor. Alternating with Ballard’s account of the hunt for the remnants of the war is a comprehensive account of the battle of June 4-7, 1942 and the events leading up to it. The historical importance of this battle to Hawaii, the United States and the entire Pacific Rim cannot be understated. Had the Japanese been victorious at Midway, they would have been poised to take Hawaii and control the entirety of the Pacific Ocean.

The accounts of the battle itself are very well done. The information is accurate, and manages to tie the overall strategic picture in with the personal accounts of the men who served on both sides of the battle. It is notable that this book manages to avoid falling into the all too common ‘good versus evil’ narrative of many American authored works on the subject. While nothing really new is added to the picture of the battle that many other books have created, this is an excellent and accessible version of events.

The search for the lost aircraft carriers becomes as compelling of the events of the battle itself, as a combined crew of US Navy personnel, University of Hawaii graduate students and Ballard’s own personnel work around the clock to find a tiny target in miles of open ocean. Accompanying the crew are two survivors from the American aircraft carrier Yorktown and two from the Japanese aircraft carrier Kaga. Both ships were destroyed during the battle, along with three other Japanese carriers and several smaller escort ships. The real focus is on the hunt for the Yorktown, which had the most extensively documented sinking position of any of the lost ships.

The book itself is very well executed, as would be expected of any National Geographic publication. It is clearly aimed at people unfamiliar with the battle or the war in the Pacific, and as such will occasionally over-explain or over-simplify terminology and events. There are a huge number of photos, maps, paintings and illustrations throughout the book. The writing is quite good, and keeps readers engaged with the events and the hunt for the missing ships. As it is impossible to photograph a complete vessel from three miles beneath the surface, paintings are used in some cases to show the state of the Yorktown as it exists today. It should be noted that only about thirty of the two hundred pages are devoted to the discovery and exploration of the Yorktown, which may be a disappointment to some readers.

There are also a few flaws with the book. One of the pages about the battle is printed on black text against a black and white photograph of a burning ship. This renders entire passages on the page almost unreadable. There is also the issue with the use of paintings to represent scenes of battle. In many instances these paintings are heavily dramatized and compressed versions of events, presenting an unrealistic picture of what actually happened by placing every aircraft involved in an engagement in the same small airspace. There is even a case of a painting being rendered unnecessary by a photo showing the same event on the very next page. Finally, there is a blatantly inaccurate photo caption towards the end of the book. It identifies an F4U Corsair lying upside down in the waters off of Midway as originating from the battle, when that model of aircraft was not even deployed until October 1942.

Aside from these minor details, the book is very much worth having in a public library or middle to high school library with a collection on the Pacific theater of World War 2. It is both informative and entertaining, which is as much as can be asked of any history book. The hardcover binding is excellent, with quality printing throughout.

Submitted October 2009 by Evan Smith, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

T'oji

DrDrewHonolulu — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:10:20 CDT

Kyong-ni, PARK. T’oji (Land). Translated from the Korean by Agnita Tennant. London: Taylor and Francis, 1996. 617 p. ISBN 9780710305084. £65.00.

This epic novel is about the Choi family’s collapse and recovery, from 1894 to the end of World War II. In a small village in Kyongsang-namdo, the southern part of Korea, a rich man named Chisu Choi is strangled by thieves because of the family’s fortune. As a result, the Choi family collapses and ends up running away in the middle of the night to Yong Jung, China, to avoid the Japanese authorities. In China, the Choi family earned enough money that they were able to return to Korea and buy back their old house and land.

The story is deeply emotional in depicting the miserable life of the colonial period, but it also has humorous tones. Moving through the end of the 19th century to the contemporary history of Korea, many people of various social classes appear in the story. The epic is more about the Korean history and society than the main characters’ lives. The Choi family’s history also represents the collapse and recovery of the Korean nation.

The author, Park Kyong-ni (the pseudonym of Park Kum-yi), was born in 1926 and died in 2008. She is one of the best-known Korean woman writers. She received the Woltan Literature Award for Land and was posthumously awarded the Gold Crown Order of Cultural Merit by the South Korean government in 2008. Her first work was a short story called “Kyesan” (“Calculation”), written in 1955. “Kim yakkuk ŭi ttaldŭl” (“The Curse of Kim’s Daughters”) is another popular work by her; similar to Land, it describes both the story of the Kim family and Korean history.

Park Kyong-ni started to write Land in 1969 and finished it in 1994. The book was written in Korean, and has been translated into English, German, and Japanese. Compared to the book in the original Korean, which has five parts in 16 volumes, the English version of the book is heavily edited. It only includes the first part of the novel and some brief episodes from the larger story, which makes it a bit difficult for readers to appreciate the sweeping narrative and full scope of the original work. In addition, the translator could have handled the Korean language and culture better. For example, more explanation of the language in the original Korean edition could have been provided for readers without a background in this language. Also, the translator could have included a brief timeline of Korean history in a preface in order to help readers understand the background.

Despite these shortcomings in translation, I recommend this book to readers interested in the real life of Koreans in the turbulent period of Japanese colonization because I found the portrayal of Korean history to be accurate and the characters believable. Because of its enormous popularity, this epic has been adapted three times as a television series in Korea, in 1979, 1984, and 2004. Although English subtitles are not available, the most recent television series (2004) is available online (http://tv.sbs.co.kr/toji/). Thus, I would also recommend the original books and most recent television series (2004) for readers who understand Korean.

Submitted in October 2009 by Song Hyun Lee, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

T’oji

DrDrewHonolulu — Tue, 06 Oct 2009 01:06:08 CDT

Submitted in October 2009 by Song Hyun Lee, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

South Sea Tales

lammers2 — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 16:30:48 CDT

LONDON, Jack. South Sea Tales. NuVision Publications, LLC, 2008. 124 p. ISBN 1-59547-594-X, $9.93. Acid-Free.

I reviewed a collection of short stories by Jack London, collectively called South Sea Tales. My overall impression of the collection was something along the lines of “wow, these stories are pretty blatantly racist”. The native islanders in most of the stories are referred to as “savages” and “heathens”, and many times a point is made to contrast the “brown-skinned men” from the “white-skinned men” with whom they are interacting. A good example of this treatment is found the short story, The Whale Tooth.

The Whale Tooth follows an English-speaking Caucasian missionary named John Starhurst (we are never explicitly told his nationality but my assumption was American). Starhurst is stationed in Fiji with 2 other missionaries who are trying to convert the local Fijians to Christianity. The missionaries meet with mixed success, with some local chiefs becoming ”Lotu” (“converted” in the native tongue) but most of the natives seem more interested in fighting and eating each other (lengths are taken to highlight the fact that the natives are ravenous cannibals).

The author, Jack London, was born in 1876, and grew up around San Francisco, California, during the later 1800s. In 1897 he traveled with many others to Alaska to join the Klondike Gold Rush. This trip was short lived, but it gave him a backdrop for many successful stories. London did also spend some time traveling in the South Pacific. It is doubtful, however, that he actually witnessed cannibalism, or any of the other violent/belligerent behavior he depicts in his tales. It is possible the he was simply captivated by the idea and thought it would make for a compelling story backdrop. It does serve as a very different atmosphere to most of his popular works, which take place in the frozen north of Alaska (i.e. White Fang, Call of the Wild, To Build a Fire).

I believe that two things save this collection of short stories. The first is its age. It is obviously from another era, and the overt racism is so out-dated that I think it loses some of its vehemence. However, I do acknowledge that ethnic Pacific Islanders may not be so quick to forgive London, and it may well be the fact that the racism is not pointed in my direction (being a white American) that dulls its effect on me. The second facet is that these stories are rather short and quite easy to read. This makes them accessible to a wide range of reading levels.

This collection of work (South Sea Tales) was originally copyrighted in 1911, however several new editions can be found today. A search on Amazon revealed at least five physical editions, as well as audio book, a Kindle edition, Google books, and various other free download sites (i.e. free-ebooks.net). A recent edition was published by NuVision Publications, LLC in 2008. This paperback edition is 124 pages. The book costs $9.93 from Amazon.com and is printed on Acid-Free paper. I especially liked this edition because there was no forward or preface by another author. It was just a reprinting of Jack London’s book, which I prefer. Public libraries with an “American classics” collection, a Jack London collection, or even a short story collection should include this book. It is quite affordable, and Jack London is considered by many to be a “classic” American author. That said, it may not be a good selection for a library located in the South Pacific, or with a recent influx of immigrants from the region (this due to its questionable depiction of local populations). These stories are obviously dated and, given that their author is a celebrated American fiction writer, it is likely that these could be safely included in most libraries without stirring up too much social unrest. However, it would fall to the library in question to judge the sensitivity of its service community to such works.

Submitted October, 2009 by Ryan Lammers, LIS student, University of Hawai’i at Manoa

Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaii

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 15:20:27 CDT

SAKODA, Kent and Jeff Siegel, Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaii. Honolulu, Hawaii: Bess Press, 2003. viii, 120p. ISBN 1-57306-169-7 (PA), $11.95. Index, Bib.

Pidgin Grammar: An Introduction to the Creole Language of Hawaii is a book serving as an introduction to the origins and structure of the language Hawaii Creole English (HCE), which is commonly referred to as Pidgin. The book consists of six chapters describing Pidgin as follows: origins and use, pronunciation and writing system, word classes, phrases, types of sentences, and complex sentences. It also includes a conclusion, glossary of common Pidgin words and phrases, reference section, and index.

Kent Sakoda is a native speaker of Pidgin and lecturer in the Department of Second Language Studies at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Jeff Siegel is Adjunct Professor of Linguistics at the University of New England in Australia and an Associate Researcher at the University of Hawaii. He has also authored and co-authored many other books on the subject of pidgins and creoles. This is the first book to describe both the origins and grammar of Hawaii Pidgin in a straightforward manner. This is in contrast to a popular book series titled Fax to the Max by Jerry Hopkins (Bess Press, 1988), which features funny Pidgin phrases along with comical drawings.

The authors do a good job of providing a brief but interesting history of the language, which developed when native speakers of Hawaiian, Chinese, Portuguese, Japanese, Korean, and many other languages, worked together on the Hawaii sugar plantations during the 19th century and needed some way to communicate with each other. Pidgin gradually derived most of its words from English and it became the native language of most people born in Hawaii, which in linguistics is referred to as a creole language. The authors do a good job of demonstrating how Pidgin is a distinct language, not just broken English. The book is full of examples that clearly illustrate the unique meanings and functions of the Pidgin words being discussed. It features a helpful glossary of Pidgin words as well as a good reference section and index. Although the book is not printed on acid-free paper and the binding quality is only fair, the price is affordable and it features large print. It is useful to those interested in the study of pidgins and creoles. Because the book’s writing style is accessible to general readers, it is recommended for purchase by Hawaii public and high school libraries, and it can be used as a self-study guide or textbook. It is also recommended for purchase by academic libraries with pidgin and creole collections as well as comprehensive Pacific collections.

Submitted in October 2009 by Natalie Cross, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Honor Killing: How The Infamous "Massie Affair" Transformed Hawaii

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 14:01:34 CDT

STANNARD, David E., Honor Killing: How the Infamous Massie Affair Transformed Hawaii. New York, New York: Penguin Group, 2005. ix, 466 p, ISBN 0-670-03399-5 (hc). $25.95. Index, Bib, Illus. Acid-Free

Honor Killing looks at the events leading up to, and the aftermath following, the Massie trial. Thalia Massie was a young lady born into wealth and prestige. She was married to Navy officer Thomas Massie, and belonged to the political elite that occupied Hawaii in the early 1900s. One night she was found stumbling and disheveled after leaving a party and claimed to have been attacked by a group of local hoodlums. This event built upon the already unstable racial tension existing in the islands and led to a manhunt and death of a Joe Kahahawai.

According to the book jacket, the author, David Stannard, is an American Studies professor at the University of Hawaii who has received numerous awards including the Guggenheim, Rockefeller, and American Council of Learned Societies fellowships. The story of the Massie case is known widely here in the islands, though a thorough history of events is not. It is here where the author lends his expertise as a narrator to history. The details that the author puts into the story allow it to unfold like a mystery novel. The clues are revealed to the reader at the same pace as the police allowing them to follow along the trail of the suspect. Details such as family history and home life of the Massies’ helps to create a clearer image of the kind of people that were involved. The author examines the case chronologically and with a universal perspective, as opposed to taking any one viewpoint, to create a clear image of the value system that existed at the time. To properly judge the injustices that occurred, all sides of the case needed to be addressed. Stannard’s research includes various accounts from people involved such as the examining doctors, the police, and circumstantial witnesses.

Stannard makes it very clear that everyone was not treated equally under the eyes of the law. Following the acquittal of the local defendants for the rape of Thalia Massie, her husband, mother, and a few sailors hunted down one of the defendants, Joe Kahahawai, and murdered him. The trial for the murder of Joe Kahahawai represented one of the biggest failures of law; the defendants were caught trying to dispose of a body and then literally got away with murder. The research Stannard gathered on police pretrial method works to give the reader an ominous foreshadowing of what is to come. Police involvement with evidence planting and leaking information to Thalia on who the “guilty” party was in the line ups, led to a disconnect between the law and its chief enforcers. Stannard’s interest in revealing the misdeeds that occurred make this an important work in Hawaiian history.

The hardcover copy of Honor Killing has a jacket depicting a sunset scene of Hawaii, something that is probably meant to draw on the irony of the Hawaiian image of paradise and the terrible injustice contained within the text. The hardcover edition of the book is durable and will be able to last longer than a paperback in a library without needing repair. For a book of this length, a paperback would probably have a damaged spine after a few readings. The illustrations in the book are comprised of black and white photographs from newspapers and family albums. The pictures lend credibility to a story that seems too fantastic, and reminds the reader that the events in the book really happened. This book belongs to any collection that specializes in Hawaii or the Pacific, but should also be in collections that have a comprehensive focus in American or Pacific history. The Massie trial was an expansion of sentiment that was held throughout a larger area than just Hawaii. While this book presents a glimpse into one of the worst cases of government sanctioned discrimination, it does present a benchmark that we can measure our progress against.

Submitted in October 2009 by Michael Ching, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Real World

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:50:35 CDT

KIRINO, Natsuo. Real World. New York, NY: Knopf Doubleday Publishing, 2009. 224p. ISBN 0307387488(pa), $14.00. Trade.

Narrated by five Japanese high school students, the novel Real World introduces a cast of characters connected by the murder of a neighborhood housewife. Of the five high school students, four of them are young women who cope with the crowded suburban society of Tokyo. Their friendships are tested when the fifth narrator, a young man who attends a prestigious high school, commits matricide. Instead of turning the boy – called “Worm” – into the police, the four young women assist him with his escape, providing cell phones and a bike. As the girls get further involved, the stakes get even higher – culminating in a wave of destruction and violence.

Natsuo Kirino, the pseudonym for the Japanese author Mariko Hashioka, is from Ishikawa Prefecture. Her style best described as “feminist noir,” she contributes heavily to Japanese detective fiction. Though few of her novels have been translated into English, her 1997 novel Out won the Grand Prix for Crime Fiction – Japan’s award for the top mystery of the year. Kirino’s other works include 18 novels, four short story collections, and an anthology of essays.

Real World is a postmodern tsunami of a novel that introduces the reader to characters who seem inhuman, or perhaps altogether too human. How could anyone aid and abet a matricidal young man, you wonder? However, Kirino delves into the young women’s personal lives, and shares the pivotal experiences (and often, the accompanying traumas) that have shaped the girls into who they are. While empathy for the murderer, Worm, is reduced by his own self-aggrandizement, the reader realizes that these four girls are driven to assist the narcissistic killer as a strike against a society that doesn’t work for them – a sociopolitical statement about a world that doesn’t provide for their emotional needs as human beings.

Kirino’s novel incorporates issues of gender and lesbian identities, and the urban anomie so essential to noir. While the list of Japanese noir novelists who focus their work on feminist and gender motifs may be somewhat small, similar authors do exist. Shibata Yoshiki is famous for her Riko series, which feature a character that examines female sexuality against a backdrop of detective fiction in novels such as Diana’s Daydream (Shinchosha). In addition, Matsuo Yumi examines many of the same motifs in her short story Murder in Balloon Town (Dalkey Archive Press).

Given the inherent themes, this novel would be a great addition to any undergraduate Women and/or Gender studies course. The themes are racy enough to prevent their entry into most K-12 educational systems, to the students’ considerable loss. In addition, the urban backdrop would make the novel a strong contributor to an Urban Studies course, as a sociological component to the interdisciplinary field. And of course, the high literary merit of the novel lends itself well to many literature courses.

Lua: Art of the Hawaiian Warrior

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:48:09 CDT

PAGLINAWAN, Richard Kekumuikawaiokeola, Mitchell Eli, Moses Elwood Kalauokalani, and Jerry Walker. Lua: Art of the Hawaiian Warrior. Honolulu: Bishop Museum Press, 2006. 158pp. ISBN 1-58178-028-3 (hc) $29.95. ISBN 1-58178-058-1 (pa) $19.95. Index. Bib. Illus. alk. paper.

Throughout Hawaiian history, Hawaiian warriors practiced the martial art of lua hidden from the eyes of non-warriors. Like other traditional Hawaiian art forms, the techniques and the practice of lua practically disappeared in the aftermath of the arrival of the missionaries to Hawaii. Lua: Art of the Hawaiian Warrior tells the story of the rediscovery of the art and techniques of this Hawaiian martial art form. Under the tutelage of the last olohe lua (literally, hairless one, olohe refers to a master of lua,), Charles Kenn, the authors of the text spent four years studying the philosophy, history, and fighting techniques of the ancient Hawaiian warriors. On completion of the years of formal study, the students became olohe themselves, with the charge from their master “huna na mea huna” (keep secret what is sacred). After Kenn’s death, his students felt that they could best perpetuate the practice of Lua by allowing a glimpse into some of the artform’s practices. The authors have carefully described the history and general philosophy of Lua, while keeping hidden most of the specifics of its practice. The book Lua: Art of the Hawaiian Warrior is the first attempt to set down the history of lua, while still keeping sacred its secret ways.

This book provides an insightful history of the fighting art, lua, from the point of view of the respectful traditional practitioner as well as an explication of its place in Hawaiian history, mythology, and religion. The book is divided into six chapters, which describe the history of lua, its ancient schools, lua Gods, weapons, and today’s recently revived lua schools . The authors also provide a group of fascinating drawings and diagrams that give readers a clear demonstration of many of the techniques. Each illustrated technique includes the Hawaiian name of the technique(ai), as described in traditional chants, and its literal translation. The illustrations give the reader a vivid glimpse of the powerful fighting techniques ranging from “the blunted nose” (Ka-ihu-manumanu) to the poetically named “the navel of Wakea” (Ka-piko-o-Wakea). Also included in the appendices are a list of the many gods associated with lua, a full list of the many ‘ai (lua techniques), with literal translations of the names and a description of the technique carefully sourced and referenced by the authors. An appendix of lua body diagrams in Hawaiian and English provides the reader with an understanding of the body parts and bones that are important to performing the ai. Endnotes, a bibliography and an extensive glossary of Hawaiian terms are essential tools for the reader in assimilating an unfamiliar topic.

In keeping with the kapu to “keep secret what is sacred”, Lua: Art of the Hawaiian Warrior gives an excellent introduction to this ancient Hawaiian martial art without becoming a primer for use. Readers interested in practicing the art form within its cultural context are directed to one of two schools of lua in the islands. The combination of text and illustrations, along with the very useful Hawaiian glossary and carefully described Hawaiian cultural context, make this book a fascinating introduction to a little-known subject. The writing is straight-forward and simple, a respectful attempt by the authors to honor their teacher. This book would be an excellent addition to public libraries in Hawaii and is suitable for general readers. Lua would also be an appropriate acquisition for libraries with users interested in Hawaiian history or martial arts.

Submitted by Nadine Little, LIS student, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 2009.

Moloka'i

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:46:39 CDT

BRENNERT, Alan. Moloka'i. New York: St. Martin's Griffin, 2003. 389 pp. ISBN 0-312-30435-8 (pbk) $13.95

Moloka'i, a captivating historical novel centered around fictional character Rachel Kalama's experience with Hansen's disease (commonly known as leprosy) sheds light on the disease itself and on Molakai's Kalaupapa community --once home to hundreds of Hawaiian exiles and to Damien de Veuster (Father Damien) -- while offering an educational account of Hawaiian history spanning nearly eighty years during a time of tremendous change. The book begins in the late 1800's, shortly after the death of Father Damien -- a Roman Catholic priest who is to become a saint in late 2009 for his commitment to leprosy victims on Moloka'i. (He died of the disease himself at the age of 49.) Rachel, age seven, is forcibly taken away from her family and sent to the island of Moloka'i where she is placed in a home run by Christian missionaries with other girls suffering from the disease. After some initial resistance, Rachel takes on the girls and nuns at the home as her family and they experience growth, love, and loss together.

Rachel has one biological family member on the island, her Uncle Pono, also a victim of the disease, and through him she comes to know her "adopted auntie" Haleola who teaches her about Hawaiian spiritual ways which leads her to reflect on the clash between traditional and Christian belief systems. On Moloka'i, Rachel experiences the bombing of Pearl Harbor and Oahu, Hawaiian statehood, and she comes face-to-face with discrimination toward Japanese Americans, after she marries a Hawaiian of Japanese descent. Despite the novel's heartbreaking main theme, the story is an uplifting one and Rachel Kalama is a strong character who the reader easily forms a bond with.

Although author Alan Brennert did not grow up in Hawaii and does not hold degrees in Hawaiian history, language, or cultural studies -- (he has a BA in English and did graduate work in screenwriting), he demonstrates a passion for the state that shines through. Mr. Brennert has written mostly teleplays, screenplays, and stage material and is most well-known for his work as a writer-producer for the television series L.A. Law. He has also written novels and short stories but Moloka'i was his first historical novel, followed by Honolulu -- a story about a Korean picture bride in the early 1900's -- released in 2009. Moloka'i appears to be exceptionally well-researched, even including the use of primary source material dating back to 1866. Hawaiian vocabulary scattered throughout is enriching but readers who are unfamiliar with popular Hawaiian phrases may find it troublesome despite efforts to provide clues. A glossary could have been included to eliminate any misunderstandings.

The book's New York publisher and limited reviews from Hawaiian reviewers leave the reader wondering about the Hawaiian perspective on accuracy and cultural sensitivities, but an interview with Mr. Brennert at the end of the novel is reassuring that he carefully considered these issues. In addition to shedding light on an important subject and providing an account of Hawaiian history, the emotive novel does not waver in holding the readers' interest throughout its almost 400 pages.

Submitted by C. Callender, LIS student, Fall 2009

Snow Falling on Cedars

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:45:05 CDT

GUTERSON, David. Snow Falling on Cedars. San Diego, CA: Harcourt Brace, 1995. 345p. ISBN 0-1510-0100-6 (hc). $12.00. Map. Acid-Free.

At first glance this story comes off as an ordinary murder mystery story. It is set only eight years after the conclusion of World War II in a small island community that still remembers the influence of war. When a fisherman is found drowned, evidence seems to point to murder but as the story and courtroom drama unfolds, the scars of past and enduring racism towards the island’s Japanese American population become blatantly apparent making the reader question whether it really was murder or if an innocent man is paying for his ethnicity. I will be the first to admit that this book has flavors of stories already written. Its theme is very similar to those found in books like To Kill A Mocking Bird and Farewell to Manzanar, however, it is the beautiful setting of the islands of the Pacific Northwest, the people who live on these islands and above all the rich language used by the author in his careful crafting of the story that makes the imagery of Snow Falling on Cedars stay with you long after you put the book down. This book forces Americans to deal with their unjust past in how the Japanese Americans were treated during World War II and makes it a personal issue by using themes everyone can relate to such as hard work, love, loyalty, and justice. The book was so well received that it was even made into a major motion film in 1999.

Author David Guterson was born and raised in Seattle and later moved to Bainbridge Island in the Puget Sound. Even though the book’s San Pedro island was fictional, Guterson’s understanding of Puget Sound island people and Puget Sound island life is reflected in this work, right down to their strawberry crops. Guterson received the 1995 PEN/Faulkner Award for this book and he has also received a Guggenheim fellowship.

While the theme of this book is one that is often used in high school courses, it has a high level of sensuality that may not be deemed appropriate for that age level, however, this book should be recommended as a valuable contribution to college and public libraries as well as any library wishing to focus on Asian or American Pacific North West studies.

Submitted by H. A. E.

Akua Hawai`i: Hawaiian Gods and their Stories

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:33:02 CDT

ARMITAGE, Kimo, Illus. by Solomon Enos. Akua Hawai`i: Hawaiian Gods and Their Stories. Honolulu, HI: Bishop Museum Press, 2005. 72p. ISBN 1-58178-042-7 (hc). $16.95. Bib., Illus. (col). Acid-Free.

Gods and goddesses play an important role in traditional Hawaiian society. They are believed to control the elements, harvest, fishing, and other things vital to human life. According to Akua Hawai`i: Hawaiian Gods and Their Stories, “Many Hawaiian gods are superhuman … To earn their favor was to be victorious in battle or successful in harvest. To incur their wrath meant severe hardship (2).” In this book, Kimo Armitage introduces readers to over 30 Hawaiian gods and goddesses, like Kumulipo and Po`ele, creators of the natural world; Haumea, the goddess associated with childbirth; Kanaloa, the god of the ocean, sailing, and voyaging; among many others.

The style of writing in Akua Hawai`i is straightforward, without a lot of extraneous details. It can be overwhelming for readers with little or no experience reading Hawaiian words because Armitage does not shorten them – for example, he uses the full names of sisters Namakaokaha`i and Pelehonuamea, simplified to Namaka and Pele in other readings. There are also numerous names of places, chiefs, and people referenced throughout the book. This book does not include an index, but there is a list of sources on the back page where readers can find other versions of the stories told in the book.

Kimo Armitage is an author, playwright, poet, lyricist, University of Hawai`i Hawaiian Studies Assistant Professor, and “a life-long student of Hawaiian culture”. Some of his works include children’s books: Limu the Blue Turtle, Where is Kahele?, Manuli`i and the Colorful Cape, Mahalo e Grandpa, Ho`omalamalama: A Hawaiian Language Primer, Na Olelo Noeau No Na Keiki, and He Mau Nane Hawai`i: Hawaiian Riddles. Akua Hawai`i won the 2006 Ka Palapala Po`okela award (Hawai`i Book Publishers Association award).

Solomon Enos is a well-known local muralist, painter, book illustrator, activist, comic strip creator, and educator. He had a comic strip called Polyfantastica in the Honolulu Advertiser, and is currently talking about developing it into a graphic novel. His artworks in Akua Hawai`i are just as important as the words, as they work with the stories told by Armitage to express the importance of the akua. Enos is also the illustrator of Epic Tale of Hiiakaikapoiopele.

This book is not recommended for those who are looking for information on a specific god or goddess, but rather a sampler of some. The gods and goddess are briefly described (origins, duties, abilities), and certain others are accompanied by short stories. Although Akua Hawai`i is cataloged under juvenile literature, it can be enjoyed by readers of all ages. Older children can take delight in the beautiful watercolor paintings of illustrator Solomon Enos, while young adults and adults can enjoy learning about the akua. Akua Hawai`i would be a great addition to libraries specializing in Hawaiian culture or legends, myth, and folklore.

Submitted in October 2009 by Tara Otomo, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa

Name Me Nobody

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:31:42 CDT

YAMANAKA, Lois-Ann., Name Me Nobody. New York: Hyperion Paperbacks, 2000. 229p., ISBN 078681466-7 (pa), $5.99.
Name Me Nobody is an exceptional coming-of-age novel for young adults written by Japanese American writer Lois-Ann Yamanaka. The novel tells the story of Emi-Lou who is a thirteen-year-old girl living with her grandmother in Hilo, Hawaii. The story follows Emi-Lou as she loses weight, experiences her first boyfriend, and struggles with her best friend, Von, being gay. The main focus of this story is Emi-Lou’s fears that she is losing her best friend and trying to find her own identity.

Lois-Ann Yamanaka was born in Ho'olchua, Molokai, Hawaii. She received Bachelor and Master degrees in Education at the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She has written four other novels, a picture book and a book of poems. Yamanaka was awarded the Pushcart Prize for Poetry and the Elliot Cades award for literature in 1993. In 1994 she was awarded the Pushcart Prize again and in 1996 she was the recipient of the Rona Jaffe award for women writers. In 1998 she was the recipient of the Asian American Studies National Book award however that prize was later revoked due to controversy over her depiction of a Filipino character in her book Blu’s Hanging. Lois-Ann Yamanaka resides in Honolulu.

I have rarely seen the topic of being gay in Hawaii dealt with in young adult literature. There are young people here who are trying to understand their sexuality and need to see main or secondary characters in novels like them. They need these novels to help them realize that they are not alone in trying to understand their sexual orientation. My heart went out to Emi-Lou as I followed her throughout the novel. Everyone has had a close friend whom they struggled with losing that friend (even temporally) to something or someone. They have to figure out how to be themselves with and without that friend. They also have to figure out how to balance sharing their friend with that someone or something else. This book is well written; it beautifully describes the setting and captures the essence of the people of Hawaii. However, the language and culture may be difficult for people who are not from the Islands to understand since Yamanaka doesn’t provide a glossary for some of the words or terms, (such as ehu, brah, pau, no lick me, she gotta be ugs) which her characters use throughout the novel. In addition to the language and culture references there is also an attempted rape scene in the novel so I’d advise junior high librarians to review the novel first prior to purchasing it.

The price of the book is reasonable which makes it a good purchase. There are no illustrations except for the cover which is simple yet colorful. I would recommend that this novel be purchased for local junior high and high school libraries and public libraries for their YA section. The book over-all was well written and worth a read.

Submitted in October 2009 by Heather Maggini-Mackay, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Spooky Stuffs

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:24:48 CDT

KNUDSEN, Eric A., Spooky Stuffs. 2nd ed. Waipahu, HI: Island Heritage Publishing (94-411 Ko’aki Street), 2003. 58p. ISBN 0-89610-772-8 (hc), $15.95. Illus.

This book is a collection of spooky tales by Eric A. Knudsen originally published in 1974. The first story in the book tells the tale of Captain Cooke landing at Waimea village on Kaua’i and the beginning of the Knudsen family. Each of the subsequent stories begins with an introduction about the author’s life at the time the story was told to him. He then tells the story. These personal elements make this book very interesting and tell the history of the author’s life on Kaua’i as well as stories of the akua. There are also several beautiful water colors and an accompanying CD.

Eric Knudsen was a folklorist who grew up on Kaua’i. He was also a lawyer and served as the representative from Kaua’i to the 1904 Republican National Convention. He was also a member of the Hawai’i House of Representatives where he served as speaker from 1905-1907.

Guy Buffet created the illustrations for this book. He was born in Paris in 1943, in a neighborhood once inhabited by greats such as Picasso and Matise. His parents owned a restaurant where he spent his time drawing on napkins and linen tablecloths while his brothers did kitchen preparations. At 14 he transferred to the Beaux Arts de Toulon to study art. At 18 he joined the French Navy, and his talent led him to become the official artist of the French Navy. In 1963 he set up his first art exhibition in the Hawaiian Islands and never left. He was commissioned Hawaii State Foundation on Culture and the Arts to paint several murals at libraries throughout the state. His art has also been housed at the Lahaina Galleries for the past 19 years.

The accompanying CD is delightful to listen to. Actor Bill Sage provided his storytelling talents for this recording. The story told on the CD is almost word for word, however there are some minor word changes provided by the storyteller. I do not believe that this was intentional, however it can be rather jarring to someone who may be following along with the text. The richness of his voice and the art of the storytelling is superb, however, and most worthy of a listen. The Hawaiian words are pronounced accurately, and the sound effects layered throughout the recording add a little something extra to the telling. Bill Sage is an American actor born in New York in 1962. He has appeared in such films as Boiler Room and American Psycho. He has almost made several television appearances on shows like NCIS and CSI.

Where this book sets out to deliver spooky spirit stories from the island of Kaua’I, overall I would say this book is not all that spooky. Most of the 13 stories in the book are about akua, and there are moments of spookiness however, there isn’t a lot of spine chilling creepiness. I think this would be a great book of spookier stories for younger children and would be fabulous for introducing them to Hawaiian folklore as well as some Hawaiian terms.

This book would be appropriate for public or elementary school libraries with a folklore collection. Older kids would probably enjoy it as well, but I think it is truly geared toward the younger crowd. It is a great combination of Hawaiian folklore and history, and the read aloud CD adds an element that would be good for classroom use.

Submitted in September 2009 by Amanda Schrader, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Hawaiian Myths of Earth Sea and Sky

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:23:19 CDT

THOMPSON, Vivian L., Hawaiian Myths of Earth, Sea and Sky. Honolulu, Hawaii: University of Hawaii Press, 1988. 83 pages, ISBN: 978-0-8248-1171-2 (hc), 0-8248-1171-2(pa), $11.99(USD). Illus.

Vivian L. Thompson has lived in Hawaii for many years. She’s had a long fascination with Hawaii’s tales and legends. She’s collected and published these tales in several books after conducting research on the subject. This book tells 12 brief stories of Hawaiian deities of the earth, sea and sky. The stories are written to keep the flavor of oral tradition in written form. Like many collections of folktales, this book is intended to introduce young readers to myths and legends of a culture which is most likely foreign to them.

Hawaiian Myths of Earth, Sea and Sky is an average introductory book of cultural tales for an audience aged 9-12. Though it is written in language which is appropriate to the age level, the style is not distinctly Hawaiian. The tales presented in this book have a European voice; that is the diction, while simple is more appropriate to the stories found in The Classic Fairy Tales edited by Maria Tatar (W.W. Norton & Co., 1999).

In using directional descriptions, the book is inconsistent. Most often the terms north, south, east and west are used. However, the more descriptive, and perhaps more authentic, term of “on the sunrise side” (page 13) does appear. The stories themselves lack the sort of resolution common to cultural myths. Folktales, fairy tales and myths are designed to explain the world around a people, and to provide lessons of appropriate behavior. The stories presented here tell of such events as the creation of the land, sea, and sky; and of how Pele came to make the Great Kilauea her home. They attempt to explain the world of Hawaii; however they do not do it well. Often the reader is left wondering the significance why the story evolved the way it did, or what the conclusion actually was. Many of the stories lack clear explanation or message. There was even a reference to the Milky Way (page 40), which is very out of place.

Overall, the voice and style the stories are told in is not Hawaiian or even Polynesian. They have a western European perspective which makes it hard to take them seriously. If the reader would like to read Hawaiian myths and legends from a purely Hawaiian perspective, Hawaiian Mythology by Martha Warren Beckwith (University of Hawaii Press, 1970) is a good alternative. In addition to inappropriate diction, there are also instances of sexist language - using the pronoun “he” when the context is not gender specific. This usage is outdated and excludes readers.

The book contains a valuable glossary of the Hawaiian language introduced in the stories. The terms are defined in understandable language. It also provides a description of vowel pronunciation in Hawaiian, as well as a pronunciation guide for both terms and names. This glossary is very helpful to one unacquainted with the Hawaiian language. This is supportive for the readers who wish to understand and consider what they have read.

This is recommended for only for consideration in Hawaiian research collections. If it were not for the distinctly European voice the author used, it would be a decent introductory storybook for elementary school curricula and libraries. This Caucasian bias in the stories of a Polynesian culture is completely inappropriate. However, this is a good book to examine in courses of comparative or children’s literature, or ethnic studies.

Submitted in October 2009, by Mary Kate Durkee, LIS Student, the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Limu: The Blue Turtle and His Hawaiian Garden

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:20:37 CDT

ARMITAGE, Kimo., Limu: The Blue Turtle and His Hawaiian Garden. Waipahu, Hawai’i: Island Heritage Publishing (94-411 Ko’aki St, Waipahu, Hawaii). 2004. 28p. ISBN 0-93154-864-0 (hc). $9.95. Illus.

Limu: The Blue Turtle and His Hawaiian Garden is about a sea turtle named Limu and the trouble he encounters in his underwater garden. He had the most beautiful garden in the entire ocean and took very good care of it. One day, his friend, a humpback whale, gives Limu a seaweed tree to grow in his garden. This seaweed starts to grow too large, and overpowers Limu’s garden. He decides to take it back to where it came from. Along the way, Limu encounters another sea turtle and together, they are able to return the seaweed and restore Limu’s underwater garden.

As a children’s book, it is appropriately geared towards elementary-aged children. The plot is easy to understand and the artwork complemented the storyline. The illustrator, Scott Kaneshiro, used bright colors, making each page colorful and attractive. The pictures aid in the comprehension of the storyline. Author Kimo Armitage incorporated an important Hawaiian value in the story, which is to help each other in times of need. Just as the Hawaiians tried to help anyone in need of a hand, another sea turtle helped Limu when she saw him struggling. This aspect of the story could be a good moral lesson for children reading this book. They can learn from the story’s example that we should help others whenever we can.

At the end of the book, Limu’s children are seen with their Hawaiian names. I would have liked to see a Hawaiian translation page for the names that appeared in the book. As a person who grew up in Hawai‘i, I know what the Hawaiian words limu and aloha means. But, children not raised in Hawaii may not understand what these words mean. By having a glossary of Hawaiian words, it may perk a child’s interest in the Hawaiian language and encourage him or her to learn more Hawaiian words.

This author has written other stories for children, including another book about Limu titled, Limu: The Blue Turtle, which is also illustrated by Scott Kaneshiro. This is available in hardcover and/or with a mini CD. Many of Armitage’s books promote the Hawaiian culture and tell of the Hawaiian traditions. One of his books, Akua Hawai‘i: Hawaiian Gods and Their Stories, has won the Ka Palapala Po`okela award of excellence in children’s Hawaiian culture from the Hawai‘i Book Publishers Association.

I would suggest elementary school teachers or librarians to purchase this book, especially to expand their Pacific collection. This is a good way to introduce the Hawaiian culture to a child, or to even reinforce the Hawaiian values that presented are in the story. This book can also be used as a lesson guide on helping others in times of need. I also feel that this is a visually appealing picture book that can help students follow along with the storyline. The illustrations are bright and colorful, which is perfectly orchestrated with the author’s story.

Submitted in October 2009 by Erika Ichihara, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Girl With the White Flag

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:19:27 CDT

ASATO, Jennifer S., The Girl With the White Flag. Tokyo: Kodansha International, 2003, 127 p. ISBN 4-7700-2931-4 (pa), $11.95. Illus.

In this translated account of a child’s experience of the Battle of Okinawa, Tomiko Higa shares her own story of heartbreak, horror, and hope during this turbulent time. Higa’s story begins a little before the war has erupted on Okinawan soil. Although they know the war has been going on in Japan for over two years, the author has never felt a great impact or pressure of the war and felt far removed from the violence and effects of the war. This short time of peace is followed by the sudden separation from her family when the war does break out on Okinawa. This book follows Tomiko’s account as she searches for her family and tries to survive the gunfire, bombshells, and hopelessness of war.

This book was originally written by Higa in Japanese and was written in retrospect as an adult. Despite this, the story is a moving account of war from a child’s perspective. What makes this book so different from most other war accounts from a child’s view is her close proximity to the violence from the war. Higa recounts of Japanese soldiers killing civilian newborns in order to keep them from crying, people committing mass suicide because of the despair, and soldiers performing hara-kiri (type of Japanese suicide) because of their severe wounds. Although there were various reasons for the high amounts of suicide during this war, including soldiers commanding civilians to commit suicide because of the “wickedness” of the American soldiers, Higa mainly attributes it to the feeling of despair that spread throughout Okinawa at that time.

I recommend this book to young adult readers since the perspective is from a child, yet the horrors seen require a mature mind. The length of this book is also appealing as it is only 126 pages, including maps, pictures, and graphs. However, this book seems to only come in one format, which is a jacketed paperback edition which makes this somewhat more expensive than the average Young Adult paperback. Higa includes photographs of her family and herself during those times of peace and this helps to make her account of what follows to ring true. The end of the book also shows a map of her travels through the battlefield and also the areas where the Japanese and American soldiers fought. Perhaps the most heart-wrenching fact at the end of the book was the grid that showed the number of civilian fatalities compared with those of the Japanese army.

One of the concerns I had regarding the accuracy of this book was whether Higa was, in fact, the girl in the photograph (a girl with the white flag). This photograph was one of the more popular photos that were taken from this war and the identity of the girl was never known. Higa remained silent about the identity of this girl until another person claimed that identity which motivated Higa to speak up about the truth of the photograph…that the girl with the white flag was Higa. However, this prompted me to wonder who was telling the truth and whether any proof was given, and whether any kind of proof could be given. Regardless of the authenticity of the identity of the girl in the photograph, this remains a gripping account of a young girl caught in the battlefield of war and ultimately delivers a story of hope and perseverance.

Submitted in September 2009 by Jennifer Asato, LIS Student, University of Hawaii at Manoa.

The Musubi Man: Hawai‘i's Gingerbread Man

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:12:46 CDT

TAKAYAMA, Sandi and Pat Hall (illustrator). The Musubi Man: Hawai‘i’s Gingerbread Man. Honolulu, Hawai‘i: Bess Press (P.O. Box 22388, Honolulu, Hawai‘i 96823), 1996. [24] pp. ISBN 1-57306-053-4 (hc), $10.95. Illus.

Imagine preparing a musubi, a shaped rice ball wrapped in dried seaweed (nori) that is eaten in Hawai‘i, only to have it come alive and run away from you. That is what happens in The Musubi Man: Hawai‘i’s Gingerbread Man, when a lady creates a musubi man using ingredients used in local Japanese Hawai‘i cooking. The lady puts on the rice ball “limu hair and a little nori jacket, two takuan eyes, an ebi nose, and a smiling mouth of ginger.”

The musubi man comes alive, winks “one yellow takuan eye,” and runs away. An elderly couple, poi dog, mynah bird, and mongoose chase after him, and the musubi man says in pidgin “Run, run, fast as you can! You no can catch me, I'm one musubi man!” He runs away until he reaches the ocean and a hungry-looking surfer, and the story has an unexpected ending.

This creative Hawai‘i- parody of the story “The Gingerbread Man” is written like a fairy tale, beginning with the typical “once upon a time” opener. The reading level of this text is appropriate for the children audience ages six to eight. The repetition of the text, such as the musubi man repeating his gingerbread-man-like taunts, provides a consistent rhythm throughout the book, making the story fun to read aloud to children.

This delightful and fun 24-page trade book presents local Hawai‘i culture to readers with the use of Hawai‘i Creole Language and a glossary that explains the Japanese and local Hawai‘i words used in the story. The Musubi Man taunts in pidgin to the mongoose, one of the pursuers, “No way I going stop for you!” The use of pidgin in the book feels authentic and not forced.

Pat Hall skillfully illustrates Hawai‘i’s natural habitat and animals using watercolors, colored pencils, and markers. Readers will recognize the story’s setting in Hawai‘i with the illustrations of a taro patch, beach, mountains, and fauna including coconut and papaya trees.

The Musubi Man has sold over 25,000 copies since its release in 2006, and the publisher Bess Press released two sequels: The Musubi Man’s New Friend and The Musubi Baby. In the beginning of 2009, the Hawai‘i Theatre for Youth performed an adaptation of The Musubi Man written by playwright Lee Cataluna.

Author Sandi Takayama, a school librarian in Kapolei, Hawai‘i, has written other Hawai‘i adaptations of fairy tales with alternate endings including Sumorella: A Hawai‘i Cinderella Story and The Prince and the Li Hing Mui.

Hall, an artist based in Hawai‘i, has illustrated other children’s books set in Hawai‘i including Curious Kimo, The Kona-Town Musicians, and a few coloring books featuring Hawai‘i’s animals. Hall also has her artworks exhibited around Hawai‘i and have won several awards for her art works.

The Musubi Man is recommended for readers ages six to eight and is a recommended purchase for local Hawai‘i children’s book collections.

Submitted in October 2009 by Alice Kim, Master of Library and Information Science Student, University of Hawai‘i at Manoa.

Before the Nation: Kokugaku and the Imagining of Community in Early Modern Japan

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:11:01 CDT

BURNS, Susan L. Before the Nation: Kokugaku and the Imagining of Community in Early Modern Japan. Durham: Duke University Press, 2003. 296p. ISBN 0-8223-3183-7 (hc), $84.95. 0-8223-3172-1 (pb), $23.95. Index, bib. Acid-free.

The idea of a unique and original Japanese identity is one that permeates many works about Japan and the Japanese. Susan L. Burns, a history professor at the University of Chicago, focuses questions about Japanese identity, and especially Japanese community, around the Koukgaku (national study movement). Central to her discussion is Motoori Norinaga’s work Kojikiden, which attempted to study the Kojiki, the oldest written record in Japan, as a work that revealed the true nature, language, and spirit of the Japanese people. Burn’s goal is to “explore this process of production [of the Japanese community] in relation to a distinct historical moment.”

The first two chapters of the book provide detailed background information. Chapter 1 discusses not only the political and social situation of Tokugawa Japan--such as the shifting power structure from Samurai to merchants--but provides detailed biographical information about each Kokugaku scholar is discussed. Chapter 2 discusses the intellectual changes from the old Chinese centered modes of thought up to Motoori’s writing of the Kojikiden. Chapters 3-7 are each dedicated to a individual Kokugaku scholar, breaking down their publications and ideas in dialogue with how they personally were effected by the scholarship that came before them.

This book is Burn’s debut work, though she published several articles and has another book titled The Body in Question: The Politics and Culture of Medicine in Nineteenth Century Japan, in progress. Many of her articles deal with gender and health issues, so in some ways Before the Nation is departure from her usual subject matter. However, she seems to often relate these subjects to identity and community, so the book does fall into a linear path of research.

This book was not only well written, but is straightforward, making it highly readable, a point of excellence for contemporary history texts. The section discussing the background social situation of the era was extremely useful in framing the rest of the book’s argument, providing a rich narrative that could have been cursory, but instead was thoroughly enjoyable. The sections on the scholars broke down their individual works into manageable sections. I have not read extensively on the topic of Kokugaku, but I feel that this book is more inclusive in its views as it includes these others scholars instead of just focusing on Norinaga. Theories of history, language, public versus private issues, and ethical questions are just some of the issues discussed in regards to each scholars approach to Kokugaku. This could have been overwhelming, to synthesize so many ideas, but each is carefully explained piece by piece. Burns draws on the history of scholarship leading up to each aspect of the works in question, as well as examine the authors personal experiences and biases that framed intellectual discourse at the time. The fact that Burns does point out bias and contradictions makes the work more balanced, a study of Kokugaku rather than either a defense or dismissal of it. Not knowing very much about this topic, I appreciated the balance because I could learn without being swayed one way or the other.

One criticism of the text is that sometimes Burns sometimes included too much information beyond the field of study. For example, in discussing Motoori Norinaga’s approach to the language of the Kojiki, Burns includes a lengthy discussion linguistic details. While this book is probably targeted towards academics, only those who had studied linguistics would fully grasp these details.

This book would be useful for any library that had a strong Japanese history emphasis. Kokugaku is often associated with the militant government in Japan leading up to World War II, so this book would also be appropriate for general World War II collections. As the book is readable, and not as highly specialized as some history texts can be, it could be enjoyed by patrons outside of academic libraries. As the book also deals with Japanese identity, Hawaii public and academic libraries would benefit from having this book for anyone working on Japanese or Asian Pacific studies.

Submitted Fall 2009 by Rachel Rozdzial, LIS Student.

Understanding Micronesia

DrDrewHonolulu — Mon, 05 Oct 2009 06:06:50 CDT

HOGAN, Tom. Understanding Micronesia: A Cultural Guide for Researchers and Visitors. Penang, Malaysia: Southbound Sdn. Bhd. (55 Jalan Sultan Ahmad Shah, 10050 Penang, Malaysia), 2008. xii, 97 p. ISBN 978-983-9054-49-1, $15. Illus (b&w). Bib.

Tom Hogan presents one way to understand why, as he claims, Micronesians are often seen as reluctant to share information with others. He explains the term manaman, which is power, but specifically due to special knowledge. And a Micronesian might say “What if you were a powerful sorcerer? By sharing your sorcery you would be diluting your own manaman while strengthening that of your rival.” This and other anecdotal stories abound in Understanding Micronesia: A cultural guide for researchers and visitors.

This short book, the published, popularized version of a doctoral thesis from Macquarie University, is Tom Hogan’s attempt to shed light on the culture of Micronesia. It aims to enlighten visitors and outsiders on the particular quirks of this little known and isolated people. It takes the form of a review of ethnographic studies of Micronesia, alongside sometimes humorous personal anecdotes of the author’s experience working in the islands. It is highly readable and accessible to all audiences by design, not delving into the details of the ethnographic data.

Tom Hogan is a Senior Research Fellow at Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia. His PhD in Ethnography and Developing Country Broadcast Communications consisted of work in Micronesia, teaching Micronesians how to do radio broadcast, making visits to all of the Micronesian states except the Northern Marianas for broadcast consultation.

The content of the work is useful, and provides a colorful, if largely anecdotal, picture of the Micronesian culture. Part of its usefulness its direct focus on the interaction of Micronesia and Western culture. It provides a detailed reference list in the endnotes. The single illustration consists of a map of Micronesia. The addition of insets showing the various islands mentioned in the text would have been more helpful than the barely discernable overview. There is no index or glossary, which is a disappointment in a work that often mentions local terms and concepts that would be of interest to cross reference.

This is one of the few ethnographic works on Micronesian culture, and a useful starting place either to find further references or gain a broad understanding of how this culture might interact with the Western world. It is recommended for public libraries in communities with increasing Micronesian immigration or a large community, and in academic centers that collect Pacific island resources at the research level, especially in universities which offer studies in Pacific studies or communications.

Submitted Fall 2009 by Jonathan Young, LIS Student