Hawai'i: True Stories of the Island Spirit

Like the title says, this is my favorite Hawai'i collection of stories. It manages to give many perspectives on the beauty and mystery of this chain of islands. If you're traveling to the islands, this is a great way to start to imagine the place you're going.

This is more of a suggestion for reading rather than a review: read the book from beginning to end because the editors have done a splendid job of organizing the essays to present a coherent and colorful view of Hawaii. I don't know of a better contemporary look into what has attracted tourists to the islands since the first Polynesians arrived. While not exactly a travel guide, it is a map for how one might travel. As a cultural anthropologist, I enjoyed hearing the many voices telling the stories of this Pacific crossroads. The book belongs to the best tradition of the Hawaiian impulse to talk story.