1 comments about Hawaii: A Pictorial Celebration.

1. We have this book on our coffee table and everyone always comments on how beautiful it is. The photos are amazing- bright and clear, and take you back to vacation days in Hawaii...aaaah. And I've learned a lot about Hawaii from the history and commentary alongside the photos- Hawaiian history is really fascinating.

3 comments about Hikers Guide to the Hawaiian Islands (Latitude 20 Books).

1. This is the Hawaii that you were dreaming of! Lush , tropical paradise without the competition of crowds at the beach! Let this author guide you to a private waterfall or atop a lava rock mountain to appreciate all the beauty hawaii has to offer. Great trail directions. Easy to follow with bits of history thrown in for entertainment. Offers trails for all ability levels, day or overnight hikes.



2. As time is of the essence while travelling, I wanted to make the most of my time on the islands. This book allowed me to explore and choose a hike that was perfect for the length of my stay. I felt comfortable with the route laid out on paper. I was dissatisfied with THE BUS route and scheduling on Oahu as compared to the simple statement under how to get there. I had to explore a different route and connection but felt that THE BUS system was to blame. Otherwise, I felt that the book did sufficiently lead to the perfect hike for me at the time. The trail was beautiful and I look forward to using the book again down the road.



3. We used this guide to choose and find trails to hike during a three week trip to Hawaii in 2002. We only went on 9 of the 44 hikes described, but this guide was nearly ideal for us with clear and easy-to-use descriptions and instructions.

5 comments about I Myself Have Seen It: The Myth of Hawai'i.

1. The typical one-week trip to Hawaii involves an immersion in lovely sights and scents and leads to a vague realization that this is a very different place from the rest of the United States. If one is lucky enough to spend a month or more then you begin to get an inkling that this is a very complex place indeed. For those who want to have a deeper inderstanding of that complexity this book is highly recommended.
   Susanna Moore , who grew up in Hawaii, nicely blends a short history of the islands with her own experiences going to school there while slowly becoming aware of the "sociology" class going on all around her. For those who want to develop a Hawaiian sense of place this short straightforward book is a good place to begin.



2. Perhaps I had the wrong expectation. The brief amount I heard on NPR made me feel I was going to learn about Hawaiian culture and maybe hear stories. This book was written in the time-honored tradition of one American explaining why other Americans should feel bad about being American. Not that she is wrong or has any of her facts misplaced. But Susanna has written a disjointed, self-serving, whining account of Hawai'i. Maybe she is lamenting the loss of a childhood that she may or may not have ever had. But each chapter is kind of summed up the same way: the noble Hawai'ian, raped literally or figuratively by the Westerner in the name of progress or profit. I am hoping that she has a chance to spend time with her therapist (since she has found reason now to live in New York).



3. I Myself Have Seen It is more than just a travel book. Susanna Moore gives insightful impressions of the Hawaii she grew up in. Through her writing you can see the real and traditional Hawaii which is unfortunately vanishing.
   What is more is you can see the influence Hawaii and its people have had on her earlier novels especially My Old Sweetheart. If you want to understand Hawaii read Ms. Moore's account as she is a real Island Girl.



4. The book is thin fluff. One of the author's '64 Punahou classmates, Laurie Ames Birnsteel, has written a more authentic and satisfying memoir, *Kahala: Growing Up in Hawaii*



5. This book is not worth the effort or the price. The history is shallow and doesn't tie at all into the author's tales of her childhood. There is just this abrupt shift from history to personal life story with no linkage whatsoever. Wierd! Her descriptions of life growing up in Hawaii are even more shallow than her historical chapters. She gets facts wrong. (Okolehao is brewed from the ti plant, not pineapple, for example.)
   
   Moore exhibits limited knowledge of the islands and their people. Maybe she suffers from failing memory, given that she moved away from Hawaii so long ago. However, I suspect she wasn't really paying attention as she was growing up. (One of my friends tells me she was focused on being one of the cool kids in school.) I say all this as a life-long resident of Hawaii who grew up in Hawaii at about the same time she did. On top of everything else Moore's writing is contrived. Don't waste your money.

2 comments about Leis, Luaus, and Alohas: The Lure of Hawai'i in the Fifties.

1. Retro Hawaiian chic----it's a happening trend!! First published about five years too soon for the now-oh-so-hot design theme of Old Hawaii (assuming you consider the 1950's old, you old goat!), Fred Basten's book is nothing more or less than a 100+ page collection of vintage photos, postcards, matchbook covers, and (best of all) 1950's advertisements depicting the joys which await you in tropical, scenic Hawaii! Here are the famous Aloha Airlines advertising maps, the Dole Pineapple ads, and the delightful hotel ads that make you want to pick up a phone, dial the number (you had to do that back then---no buttons!), and book a room. There are plenty of breathtaking photographs as well, from scenic drives to sunsets to tourists at play (including a few of the author himself!). And it's nice to see some things never change: the luau menu printed on page 104 is almost exactly identical to the menu of the Old Lahina Luau, Maui, circa 2003. (Right down to the coconut cake for dessert!) Two minor quibbles: at 111 pages, it's at least two hundred pages too short! (With all the pictures, if it were longer it would cost $50, but I for one would gladly pay it.) Also, Basten has made the decision to keep the written text as short as possible and let the pictures speak for themselves. Even though I think this is a wise move, I would have welcomed some more discussion about Hawaii in the fifties, how it became a state, etc. Still, the fabulous photos and other displayed goodies will have you planning your next trip right away. Not an easy book to find outside of Hawaii (I found mine in a famous Hawaiian retail store.), but worth the effort. So, get this book wiki, wiki (quickly). Your coffee table is bare without it. Aloha!!!



2. This book is very disappointing. I lived on Oahu in the late 50s and early 60s so I know the time period and what the Islands were like. They were heaven. No doubt about it. This book does not capture even an iota of that heaven. This is a mishmash of common ephemera poorly reproduced. There is no depth to the subject matter. To say there are two authors is a joke since what text is available could have been written by a travel agent in Manhattan who never left THAT island. Two guys with some old brochures is more like it. I had hoped that the book would deal with what the Islands were like during the time period, five years after the war and statehood in 1959. This is simply a mainlanders idea of what Hawaii was like and it goes no deeper than an aged worn brochure in the bottom of a dusty drawer.
   
   And to make things worse they chose a large format trim size which allowed them to print a lot of poor quality photos, reproduced from much smaller brochures, at the books full trim size. Photos that originally were meant to be small are suddenly large and blurry because they had to worry about dot patterns when enlarged. Shame on the "authors" and publisher. A smaller trim size would have benefited the reader. The art ends up looking too often like filler. I'm sure the pages looked fine on the computer screen when the book was being layed out, but suddenly when the thing is sitting in your lap you have to wonder what they were thinking. The whole thing looks cheap, which at $24.99 it's not.
   
   Though I have yet to find the definitive book about Hawaii pre-statehood I can recommend the following two far superior books, each also full of ephemera, but produced with much better production values, and cheaper than this bloated waste of paper:
   
   "Hawai'i At Play" and
   
   "To Honolulu in Five Days"

No comments about Hawaii Volcanoes National Park: Fire from Beneath the Sea.

1 comments about Nelles Map Hawaii The Big Island (Nelles Maps).

1. Used this map constantly while driving all over the Big Island. I also purchased the Delorme Atlas and Gazetteer, but found myself always coming back to the Nelles for readability.

4 comments about Hawaii Dreamscapes Revealed - Big Island.

1. 
   There are two types of travel books. The first has interesting photos, but writing which either detracts, or does not add to the experience. The second has competent writing, but photos you've seen a million times.
   
   This book is neither.
   
   "Hawaii Dreamscapes Revealed" is in a category all of its own.
   
   From the renowned author, Andrew Doughty, along with his photographer, Leona Boyd, "Hawaii Dreamscapes Revealed" has ushered in an entirely new genre of travel books with this articulate and intelligent photo series.
   
   This is one of the most exquisite books I've ever read.
   
   Clearly, the writer and photographers of "Hawaii Dreamscapes Revealed" have found the beautiful and the savage, the profound and the simple, the dream and the reality. And even more amazingly, they share their extensive knowledge with their readers. Open this book to any page and you'll be astounded at the authors' breathtaking slant on one of the most incredible places in the world.
   
   Yet this is not your typical book of pretty photographs of palm trees in Hawaii. Truly, I've never seen anything like this. Their renderings of snow clouds beneath your feet, wild goats, beaches glittering with gems, jungle flowers, hellish fumes, driftwood, and mountains leave the reader wondering, "Where on earth is this place?"
   
   How in the world could one place contain all of this? Who knew that Hawaii has ten of the world's fifteen climatic zones? I hope to travel to Hawaii someday, and will now do so in an entirely different way.
   
   Check out pages 100-101 for a simply astonishing photo. Enter this dreamscape revealed, and perhaps you'll learn as much about yourself, as you do this amazing place.
   
   "Though we travel the world over to find the beautiful, we must carry it with us or we find it not."- Ralph Waldo Emerson
   
   These two authors carry it with them. Travel with this pair as they let you glimpse the color of Hawaii's soul.
   
   You won't regret the journey.



2. "This is a land that has ten of the world's fifteen types of climatic zones," so writes Andrew Doughty in the Introduction of HAWAII DREAMSCAPES REVEALED, a stunning collection of photos of the "Big Island."
   
   I went to Oahu a few years ago and was completely blown away by the beaches, the mountains, the ocean. It is one of the few places that not only lives up to the photographs but actually surpasses them in many ways. Paul Theroux, the international best-selling author of "The Mosquito Coast" and some of the greatest travel narratives of all time, moved to Hawaii after kayaking around the islands for his book, "The Happy Isles of Oceana"--and this was a guy who has literally been EVERYWHERE. (He went on to write "Hotel Honolulu" as well). So obviously these are enchanting islands that can get under your skin and draw you back.
   
   I expected great photography of the beaches and lava in HAWAII DREAMSCAPES REVEALED but I was also blown away by other unexpected scenes: an empty black beach covered by so many white pieces of coral that it looks like patches of snow, a cattle ranch beneath a range of mountains that HAS snow on its peaks (in Hawaii!), a high-altitude terrain above the clouds that looks like the surface of Mars. There's one wild shot of lava cooling in smooth orbs on the ground (I expected the liquid-metal Terminator to stand up out of them).
   
   The shots of lush forests and waterfalls and reefs are also striking and well-chosen.
   
   I will definitely be getting the Oahu volume since I'd like to see what this photography couple have done with an island I've seen.
   
   From what they've shown me of the Big Island, I will try to go back someday soon.



3. Beautiful book! Some of the photos are of areas we couldn't get close enough to take. My only question is...when will the books for the other islands be published?



4. Beautiful pictures but I would have enjoyed more text describing what I was seeing.

3 comments about Maui 101.

1. Most books about exotic places are written by people who come from afar, do their homework, and go home to write about it. Nothing wrong with that. But an insider picks up the subtleties that others miss. Jill Engledow has lived on Maui most of her adult life and wrote for the Maui News for many years. She covered every aspect of island life and then some. This book is meant for people thinking about moving to Maui or who have just landed with all their earthly posessions looking for a new life. "Maui 101" contains all kinds of useful tips that will make settling on the Valley Isle much easier. Life is different in Hawaii, and it sure helps to have a detailed guide for new residents at your finger tips.



2. Of the various books I have read about Maui, Jill Engledow's is by far the most informative.She paints an excellent picture of the culture and history of Maui. You gain so much insight and understanding of the Island and it's people, she actually puts you there and provides such great insights that I have not found in the texts. Alas. don't leave home with out FIRST reading Maui 101.



3. -- it really gives a good overview of what it is like to live in Hawaii. It gives a great summary of Hawaiian history and then relates what you read in the history to what's going on today in the islands. Lots of practical tips about how to survive in the islands, both on a social level and in terms of coping with the high cost of living. This writer really knows Hawaii and does a good job of sharing what she knows. I would think tourists would be interested as well as people who have just moved to Hawaii.

5 comments about Mark Twain in Hawaii.

1. I picked up this book at the Bishop Museum in Honolulu and read it while touring around Oahu and Molokai in late 2001. Having been to all the islands of Hawaii I can say this work really catches the flavor of the place. Twain narrates his own adventures as well as providing his unique commentary on the customs, culture and history of the islands.
   A very entertaining piece, particularly for those who have been to Hawaii or are planning a trip.



2. It was particularly interesting to read Mark Twain's account of the lava flowing in Kilauea crater. That was a much more active time for Kilauea that the current lava flows there. I also very much enjoyed Twain's humor.



3. Did you know Mark Twain went to Hawaii on assignment by the Sacramento Union in 1866? This book includes his write-up, which first appeared in Roughing It. It has a good two page introduction by the editor and then Twain's 13 chapters, in their original type, with the original illustrations. Outbooks did a great job on this.



4. Mark Twain provides a good treatment of the whole Hawaiian experience and pokes fun at missionaries, the royal family, and just life in general. The introduction to this edition makes it very readable. My only disappointment is that the "Letters from the Sandwich Islands" published by Twain in 1866 are not included; at least one should have been used to illustrate the two different writing styles Twain used. The short description in the introduction probably don't do the original letters justice.



5. My husband and I took this book on a trip to Hawaii and we loved it. It is the perfect take along book.

No comments about The Field Guide to Lighthouses of the Pacific Coast: California, Oregon, Washington, Alaska, and Hawaii (Field Guide).