Based upon Moses K. Nakuina's early twentieth-century telling of this story - published in Hawaiian in 1902, and translated for Marcia Brown by Prof. Dorothy M. Kahananui - Backbone of the King: The Story of Paka'a and His Son Ku is essentially a young adult novelization of this traditional tale, which follows the adventures of three generations of men who serve as kahu iwikuamo‘o, or "backbone" (attendant) to the king, Keawe-nui-a-'Umi.

When Ku-a-Nu'uanu arrives at Kapa'a, on the island of Kaua'i, the people there assume that he is a "nothing," - "a wanderer without rank" - and are greatly offended when he marries La'amaomao, daughter of priests. When he departs the island, returning (unbeknownst to the people there) to his duties as kahu iwikuamo‘o to the king, on the island of Hawai'i, they turn their back on La'amaomao, and her son, Paka'a. But the young boy, discovering his true parentage, manages to join the inter-island voyage of Pai'ea, chief of Kaua'i, eventually finding his way to Hawai'i, where he makes himself known to his father, and takes his rightful place at his side. Years later, when jealous rivals supplant Paka'a in the affections of the king, spreading untrue rumors about him, he retreats to the island of Molokaʻi, where he too has a son, Ku-a-Paka'a. Now it is Ku who must fight to regain his (and his father's) rightful place in the world.

Backbone of the King was an engaging tale, full of adventure and magic! Not being familiar with Hawaiian, I found it rather difficult to keep some of the names and terms straight, but luckily there was an extensive glossary at the rear. I was struck, in the course of my reading, by the fact that although the culture depicted seems very male-centered - all the main characters are boys and men, and all the great deeds are performed by males - Paka'a and Ku are able to triumph, not simply through their own cunning, bravery, and honest love (or aloha) for their king, but through the agency of the magical wind gourd that comes to them through their female ancestor. I was also struck by how stratified Hawaiian society was, with lineage being so important in determining worth, and people divided into commoners (even slaves) and chiefs.

I'd like, at some point, to read the original - Moses K. Nakuina's Moolelo Hawaii o Pakaa a me Ku-a-Pakaa, na Kahu Iwikuamoo o Keawenuiaumi, ke Alii o Hawaii, a o na Moopuna hoi a Laamaomao ("The Hawaiian Story of Pakaa and Ku-a-Pakaa, the Personal Attendants of Keawenuiaumi, the Chief of Hawaii, and the Descendants of Laamaomao") - which is available today as The Wind Gourd of La'amaomao: The Hawaiian Story of Paka'a and Kuapaka'a. ( )