Hawaii
by James A. Michener
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other reviews (showing 1-20 of 1708)
Read in September, 2008
This was a great book, but it had my eternal problem with Michener. The modern stuff is just so much more boring than the older stuff, and it goes off on ridiculous tangents that go nowhere. It is especially frustrating here, because the core story is wonderful. Each chapter, of the first four, is great, the first deals with the Polynesians, then the Missionaries, then the Chinese, then Japanese. Each focuses primarily on one family, with other characters woven in, and he has such a knack for cr...more
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Read in February, 2008
This book is really looong, and I would say that 90% of it is quite good. It's typical James Michener. You get a comprehensive idea of the history of Hawaii, if not the details, and it's also a pretty fun read. Not high literary style, but not badly written either. My favorite character shows up about halfway through the book, and lives to be over 100 and sticks around to almost the end. So if you're slogging through this one, at least stick around for Nyuk Tsin and her adventures as the Pa...more
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Read in January, 1994
recommends it for:
Anyone interested in Hawaii
I read this tome in high school, and I remember really liking it... in high school. So I need to revisit this book. While I'm sure it is rife with historical inaccuracies, I think I may unexpectedly still like it. First and foremost it is fiction, I'm not aware of Michener peddling it as otherwise (though I may be wrong on that). And as fiction, I don't think there are too many other as well read novels covering Hawaii with its vast and complicated history in a genuinely sensitive and good f...more
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Okay, so I'm a bit nuts, and before I went on vacation to Hawaii last year, I decided to read Michener's ginormous book. Yes, I have seen a doctor about my condition. Anyway. I had never read Michener before, and was curious to see how he could write a biography of geography, in essence. What he's done is invent a family for each of the periods of Hawaii's history, and follow them through the major events that shaped the islands. They are based on real people who were the movers and shakers...more
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Read in October, 2008
Reading this was a monumental task: I started it on the plane to Hawaii in mid August and finished it on October 1st!!I nearly didn't make it through the first chapter about the formation of the islands, but I'm glad I persevered. Michener takes us from Tahiti (Bora Bora) to the arrival of the missionaries, the Chinese, and the Japanese. There are a number of marvelous characters (Char Nyuk Tsin is my favorite) and set pieces. Michener is especially good at moments of high tension, which are amp...more
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Read in July, 2008
The first two chapters of Hawaii are quite exciting. Michener tells the history of the islands from a geological perspective, and then crafts a story of the earliest migrants to the island that is exciting, plausible, and fun to read.
But then Michener fast forwards to the early 19th century and efforts by the mainlanders to Christianize the islands. The missionary portraits are so by-the-numbers, so two-dimensional as to render the chapter unreadable. Whether or not the missionaries' reactio...more
But then Michener fast forwards to the early 19th century and efforts by the mainlanders to Christianize the islands. The missionary portraits are so by-the-numbers, so two-dimensional as to render the chapter unreadable. Whether or not the missionaries' reactio...more
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Read in July, 2008
recommends it for:
Those who enjoy multi-generational stories, and those who want to learn about our most exotic state.
I first read this novel in the 1970's. I became very interested in our 50th state and have traveled there several times since. If you have seen the movie, trust me you need to read the book. Michner likes to take the way-back machine all the way to the formation of the islands, then the arrival of flora and fauna and eventually to the arrival of the original Hawaiian's from Bora Bora. The strong parts of the book are the conflict of cultures as new groups arrive. Melting pot is a lovely concept,...more
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This is the longest book I've ever read, I think. I read it in high school. And, despite being 4,000 pages long, I enjoyed every bit of it. (Except the first part about Hawaii being formed by volancic eruptions and geological formations, and blah blah blah... I almost stopped after the very beginning, but am glad I hung in there until human life evolved, because then it got good.)
I still remember that the main characters bumped in Mormon missionaries once. And, people got pregnant on boats t...more
I still remember that the main characters bumped in Mormon missionaries once. And, people got pregnant on boats t...more
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Read in December, 2000
recommends it for:
those Maui-bound
this is no great work of literature (I believe the term is "beach read") but it's a pretty engaging work of historical fiction that follows the trials and tribulations of the main character - the Hawiian islands - and the various people that inhabit, nuture, rape, pillage and 'civilize' it over hundreds of years.
I read it before I went to vacation there and it definitely gave me a deeper understanding and appreciation for the place beyond it's heartbreaking beauty. If you're going...more
I read it before I went to vacation there and it definitely gave me a deeper understanding and appreciation for the place beyond it's heartbreaking beauty. If you're going...more
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Read in July, 2007
This is a book I've started reading several times since childhood. The size of it has always been daunting, but also the seemingly pointless and overly wordy first hundred pages or so.
After that, though, Michener develops interesting characters that link richly in the history of the islands. I think it is important to remember that Michener made up his characters, and that the great families whose generations he weaves together are figments. This is not a true history of Hawaii, and Michene...more
After that, though, Michener develops interesting characters that link richly in the history of the islands. I think it is important to remember that Michener made up his characters, and that the great families whose generations he weaves together are figments. This is not a true history of Hawaii, and Michene...more
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Hawaii is a novel by James Michener published in 1959. Written in episodic format, like most of Michener's works, the book narrates the story of the original Hawaiians, who sailed to the islands from Bora Bora, the early American missionaries and merchants, and the Chinese and Japanese immigrants who traveled to work and seek their fortunes in Hawaii. The story begins in the ninth century C.E. and ends in the mid-1950s.
Each chapter explores the experiences of different groups of arrivals. Th...more
Each chapter explores the experiences of different groups of arrivals. Th...more
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Read in January, 2007
I know that Edward Rutherford, one of my favorite authors, was a sort of disciple to James Michener and his location-based historical fiction genre, but Hawaii was massively disappointing. It begins with a lot of promise: the first few chapters about the island erupting from the ocean and the early Polynesians migrating to the newborn islands are fantastic, and the first Protestant missionaries are also interesting. Unfortunately,...more
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Read in December, 2005
I started reading this before we left on our trip and finished the final page around a month after we arrived home. The last page was very sad as it represented another end to our trip. It was an amazing trip and reading that book parallel to being there made me really feel as if I was understanding the culture and the history there. It helped make an even deeper mark on my life.
It was a typical Michener novel - some parts slower than others but his books always give you a deep kinship wi...more
It was a typical Michener novel - some parts slower than others but his books always give you a deep kinship wi...more
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Read in January, 1972
I fell in love with Michener in high school, and Hawaii was my favorite of his books that I read at that time. His earlier books like Hawaii and The Source are much better than his later ones, when he relied too heavily on researchers and not enough on his plots and characters. In Hawaii, he does one of his better jobs of showing generations of characters who built the culture. Hawaii is also an easier read than The Source.
If you haven't read Michener before, start with Hawaii and The S...more
If you haven't read Michener before, start with Hawaii and The S...more
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Read in November, 2007
From the geological and natural history to the social, political, and commercial history of the islands, this book was both informative and engaging. I normally am not into books about history but this one managed to keep my attention the whole (very long!) time. I have read reviews that say the characters are very shallow and not explored in depth but I found quite a few characters that I really felt like I knew. The book is also an interesting look at well-intentioned but grossly misguided Chr...more
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Read in April, 2004
recommends it for:
Historical fiction enthusiasts
I loved every minute of this book. I didn't know a thing about Hawaii until one day I was talking to someone from Hawaii and she mentioned that at one point in history the Queen had been imprisioned. I said "Huh?" and then I started to ask some questions about the history of Hawaii and someone recommended this book. He told me to just get through the first few chapters where Michener goes on about the creation of the land and the rest would be great. He was right. What a fantastic
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As I read more Hawaii non-fiction, I realize more and more how much high quality research Michener put into this work. Yes, he compressed multiple historical figures into one character, or changed things a bit to fit his story, but this gives an excellent sweeping overview of Hawaiian history. Only academics and spoilsports will quibble with the artistic license; the power of the fiction provides a pretty accurate account--and personalizes the history through very well-drawn characters.
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Read in October, 2007
recommends it for:
people who love long, great books
I'm not going to lie, this book is a project. Even though it took months to read, I loved each of the chapters, the weaving lives and stories, and the obvious love the author has for Hawaii and the various cultures that make up its unique culture. After having been there, the book was ever more special because I could imagine the places and the people. While Hawaii wasn't as great as other Michner books I've read (The Source, Chesapeake), it was still incredible and worth reading.
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My MIL gave this to me as a gift for our Hawaiian honeymoon. It's a good read, though I wish I knew enough about Hawaiian history to judge the accuracy. I think my favorite parts of the novel were the sections dealing with the Chinese and Japanese immigrants to the islands. The missionaries were completely annoying.
ETA: I did a little research and it seems Michener's facts about Hawaii are pretty solid. Kind of amazing when you think of all the research!
ETA: I did a little research and it seems Michener's facts about Hawaii are pretty solid. Kind of amazing when you think of all the research!
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Michener begins his story of Hawai'i from practically the time of (believe it or not) the Big Bang. It takes quite a few pages just to get past the geological emergence of the islands, but hang in there, a thoroughly engaging story about the settlers of Hawai'i, the coming of the missionaries and the cross-cultural collison between the two; with tradition, folklore, religion and love thrown in to boot. I'm on the side of the native Hawaiians. Aloha!
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