CBR15 BINGO (Asia and Oceana square: Hawaiian author, takes place in Hawaii, about a Hawaiian family, culture) BINGO! \ South America to Europe
I was surprised to find that I was the first to review this book for CBR. Remedy this immediately, everyone! It’s a really, really great book.
The story, put simply, is about family. In this case, a family in Hawai’i struggling to make ends meet. In search of more job opportunities, they are about to move to a different island. As a last hurrah, the father splurges on tickets for a glass-bottom boat tour. When Nainoa, the middle child, falls into the water and is brought back to the boat by sharks, everything changes. Why would a shark not only spare the child but save it? Is Nainoa destined for something beyond what they could ever imagine?
Nainoa’s parents cling to the miracle as both a spiritual and financial life raft while his siblings are left in the wake. His sister Kaui, excels at school but never quite fits in. Dean, feeling the sting of his younger siblings’ accomplishments, craves attention in whatever way he can get it. The family dynamics shift from a tight-knit tribe to a fractured whole scrambling to put the pieces back together. While at the center, the “chosen child” grapples with the expectations of his parents and community, unsure of why he was chosen and for what purpose.
Washburn’s story skews a little towards magical realism, but the “magical” parts of the book are more foil than focus. The mythology of Hawai’ian gods makes the lush landscape even more vivid and mysterious. The nagging sixth sense that pulls at each of the characters offers a deeper understanding of who they are: Kaui who needs to connect her intellect with her physical body, Dean who yearns to have something special that he offers the world, Nainoa who doesn’t want to disappoint. Ultimately the mystical elements speak more about their connections to the land, to their ancestors, and to one another.
The story is told from the alternating perspectives of Dean, Kaui, Nainoa, and their mother. It really emphasized the sense of isolation that each of them felt and the heartbreaking reality that they often misunderstood one another. It’s a bittersweet story about finding purpose, acceptance, and love.
