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Wonderful. Genuinely felt she made my grumpy old withered black heart bigger by the end. A real warm joy of a read that I recommend to one and all. She manages the very tricky task of writing about things like love, tradition, finding of the self and forgiveness of the self, without being sappy or trite or chocolate-box sweet. Plus, I am sure I felt something of the warmth of Hawai’i slipping through this frosty English February as I read, which is about as close to magic as I get...
No one ever paid much attention to mac salad—it was just a side dish. But without mac salad, plate lunch wouldn’t be plate lunch. No ways. Something would be missing—no matter how good the tempura was, or the katsu, or even the chicken.Something has to be there, between the main kau kau, to make everything one true meal…Jonny-Boy took another bite of the salad, then some chicken. Then some more salad. Then a bite of tempura. He smiled. Was ono....“Just be yourself, Nona,” said the old lady in re...
This is amazing boook
Ryka's He Mele A Hilo is a delicious read. Set in Hawaii, this lush, comforting story explores ideas of identity, propriety and belonging. Following and joining the threads of her characters' searches for authenticity, Ryka gives us a view of Hawaii from many sets of eyes. Conversational in tone and pace, this book is an example of storytelling done by someone who excels at connecting to their audience and delivering characters who are believably whole human beings, worthy of our love and attent...
Wonderful, magic portrait of a small community in Hilo, Hawaii. Aoki's characters are richly conceived. I'm excited to check out other titles from Topside Press.
A clarion call to love thyself and others and all the mistakes and flaws that come along in the package, He Mele A Hilo is a fun, relaxing read about personal growth and identity with a colourful backdrop of Hawaii, its landscape and culture, food, dancing, music, and even language (teaching you Hawaiian local slang throughout the book). Aoki creates rich vignettes of characters and links them together in her microcosm of the world, and as we uncover more and more about each character through th...
I'm from Hawaii and my dad grew up in Hilo: Hilo is the only place we'd go on vacation when I was a young kid, and I have so many fond memories of it. This book was so comfortable and warm, and I'm excited to read more that Ryka Aoki has written.
pretty much cried straight through this one and don't think it was only cuz i'm gonna bleed soon. there's without a doubt an immensity of depth i'm missing partially through language (it's written in hawaiian pidgin english) & partially through my lack of knowledge about the gods of those islands and their stories. what i received from this book were pictures of some rare & sweet kinds of romance & partnership, some subtle & complex kinds of growth in community, and also a relationship to innate...
"He Mele A Hilo" is a story about love, faith, friendship, and identity. Written in Hawaiian pidgen English, the narrator weaves several individual tales together to create one large story. Some transitions between voices will feel choppy to those unused to folktales and traditional story telling. All in all, the cadence and language feel warm. Ryka Aoki has done a wonderful job immersing the reader in Hawaiian culture, and bringing to life the lives of Harry, Nona, Noelani, Kam, and Steve, to n...
This is a genius book and one that I want everyone to read.
He Mele a Hilo (A Hilo Song) is a delicious novel, filled with vibrant portraits of its characters. Not to be missed.