30. Island Fire : An Anthology of Literature from Hawai'i by Cheryl A. & James R. Harstad (editors) (2002, 237 pages, read June 14 – July 7)

I stumbled across this book in a small “antique” store in the tiny town of Paia, on Maui. I had been looking for more books on Hawaii, but I didn’t expect to find any books in that store and was simply killing time after a chiropractor appointment. What a unexpected little gem.

The collection was originally published in 1981 as one volume in a three-volume anthology titled Asian-Pacific Literature. This volume, all on Hawaii, was apparently popular enough that it was republished by itself 20-years later, in 2002, with some updates. The editors made a strong effort to capture the cultural variety of Hawaii. They collected mostly modern (circa 1978) local literature, including even selections from 8th and 11th grade authors. They also include some Hawaiian-language chants, printed with English translations. And they avoided the biggest Hawaii-associated literary names. In the intro they state “By no coincidence, none of the authors was named Twain, London, Maugham, Stevenson—or Michener!” The result is a rich colorful collection that touches on a number of different aspects in the diverse Hawaiian spectrum.

Flipping through the stories again I’m really struck by how much of Hawaii this brings out. In The Surfer a character takes care for his dying friend (with maybe hinted homosexual overtones) by sitting by him and talking about surfing. The dying man is of Japanese-descent. The other man is happy to criticize himself as Haole (a native Hawaiian somewhat derogatory term for Caucasians)…and yet there are no native Hawaiians in the story. In Oranges are Lucky an elderly, maybe somewhat senile Chinese woman remembers her past in perfect clarity when she lived happily in China until being forced to move to Hawaii by her husband who mainly wanted a new identity. In The Luna on the Landing and old man of unspecified origin (Japanese?) takes cares of an unrelated boy in an abandoned cliff-side boat landing where he spent the entirety of his working life.

Hawaii has a sad post-discovery history characterized by a sharp decline in the native population and western exploitation. Desperate for labor, the western-run plantations imported large numbers of people from China, Japan, Korea, the Philipines, and elsewhere. The modern result is something special, it’s a beautiful cacophony of clashing cultures. The literary possibilities are enormous.

For a better sense of the book (and for my own reference), I’ve posted the table of contents with some ethnic or other important description of each work. The asterisks mark favorite stories.

1. Fire Chant for King Ka-la-Kuau (Hawaiian chant) translated by Mary K. Pukui & Alfons L. Korn
2. The Queen's Prayer (poem in Hawaiian) by Queen Lili'uokalani
*3. Pele's Own (short story, Hawaiian theme) by Charles M. Kong
*4. The Mystery of the Ku'ula Rock (short story, Hawaiian theme) by Joseph Keonona Chun Fat
5. Three Island Images (three poems) by David C. Farmer, Mudra & James N. Gusukuma
6. "Malie" (excerpted from Moloka'i, Hawaiian theme and ??, also leprosy theme) by Oswald A. Bushnell
7. Songs of the Chanter Ka-'ehu (Hawaiian song) translated by Mary K. Pukui & Alfons L. Korn
8. Tearning Down a Planation House (poem haole?/Hawaiian/Japanese? Theme) by Vittorio Talerico
9. Hanapepe, Kaua'i (poem) by Geralding Heng
*10. The Luna of the Landing (short story, maybe Japanese theme) by Marshall M. Doi
11. Plantation Christmas (short story) by Vivian L. Thompson
12. New Year (poem, Japanese theme) by Gail Harada
13. Comfort Woman (short story, Korean theme) by Nora Okja Keller
14. Juk (poem, Korean theme) by Wing Tek Lum
15. Oyako-Donburi (poem, Japanese theme) by Sera Nakachi
16. Girls, Are They Worth It? (short story, 11th-grade author) by Jonathan Kim
*17. A Small Rebuttal (poem) by Barbara B. Robinson
18. Lost Sister (poem Chinese theme) by Cathy Song
*19. Oranges are Lucky (drama, Chinese theme) by Darrell H.Y. Lum
*20. Ancestry (poem) by Eric Chock
21. Here I Am (poem, Japanese theme) by Gary Tachiyama
*22. Old Kimono (short story, Japanese theme) by Marie Hara
*23. The Surfer (short story, Japanese/haole theme) by Asa Baber
24. Ramble Round Hawai'i (Hawaiian chant) translated by Mary K. Pukui & Alfons L. Korn
25. Son of the Shark-God (Hawaiian myth) retold by Alfons L. Korn
*26. The Pool (short story, Hawaiian/haole theme) by John Dominis Holt
27. Turtles (poem) by Lois-Ann Yamanaka
28. "Great Grandfather of the Sandalwood Mountains" (excerpted from China Men, Chinese theme) by Maxine Hong Kingston
29. The Hongo Store, 29 Miles Volcano, Hilo, Hawai'i (poem) by Garrett Hongo
30. excerpt from Sachie, A Daughter of Hawai'i (Japanese theme) by Patsy Saika
31. The Mystery Writer's Class Reunion (short story, 11th-grade author, haole theme) by Lisa Horiuchi
32. Awapuhi (poem) by Puanani Burgess
33. A Fire (short story, Korean/Chinese theme) by Ty Pak
34. The Men Whose Tongues (poem) by Dana Naone
35. A Chant for a Wedding (poem) by Alfons L. Korn
36. The Grandmother (short story Japanese/Haole? Theme) by Susan Nunes
37. Hybrid (poem) by Juliet S. Kono
38. Bonsai (poem, Japanese theme) by Frances Kakugawa
39. Papio (poem) by Eric Chock
40. The Million-Dollar Mango Tree (short story, 8th-grade author hapa-haole/Filipino theme) by Ryan Monico
41. More Precious than Pineapples (poem) by Vittorio Talerico
42. Chinatown (poem, Chinese theme) by Cathy Song
43. A Haole Stops in Kaimuki (short story, Portuguese/Haole theme) by Jim Harstad
44. Pele's Children (short story, grade-school author?, haole tourist theme) by Alissa Fukushima
*45. excerpt from A Pilgrim's Kisses (essays) by James D. Houston

2011
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