Spell of Hawaii

This book is a history of Hawaii drawn from various sources, ranging from primary historical notes to topical fiction. It begins with a selection from James Michener's historical epic, Hawaii, in which he describes the early geological formation of the islands. From this, the text moves on to stories of Hawaiian mythology, a first-hand account of Cook's landing, and descriptions from missionaries, Mark Twain, and Isabella Bird. The book includes short stories from Jack London, Eugene Burdick, and Milton Murayama, among others. Although the selections are drawn from a wide-range of sources, the overall text provides a remarkably coherent history of the islands. I was initially skeptical of the value of mixing fictional stories in with historical accounts, but I found that the editors have done a fine job at weaving these elements together to build a multi-faceted history of the cultural as well as physical aspects of the islands. The text doesn't quite stand on its own as a comprehensive history book, but if the reader is familiar with the main events of Hawaiian history, or has even read a simple outline, this book will fill in many of the details and make the story come alive.