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Title details for Paradise of the Pacific by Susanna Moore - Available

Paradise of the Pacific

Approaching Hawaii

by Susanna Moore
Kaipo Schwab
Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
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1 of 1 copy available
The history of Hawaii may be said to be the story of arrivals—from the eruption of volcanoes on the ocean floor 18,000 feet below, the first hardy seeds that over millennia found their way to the islands, and the confused birds blown from their migratory routes, to the early Polynesian adventurers who sailed across the Pacific in double canoes, the Spanish galleons en route to the Philippines, and the British navigators in search of a Northwest Passage, soon followed by pious Protestant missionaries, shipwrecked sailors, and rowdy Irish poachers escaped from Botany Bay—all wanderers washed ashore, sometimes by accident. This is true of many cultures, but in Hawaii, no one seems to have left. And in Hawaii, a set of myths accompanied each of these migrants—legends that shape our understanding of this mysterious place.
In Paradise of the Pacific, Susanna Moore, the award-winning author of In the Cut and The Life of Objects, pieces together the elusive, dramatic story of late-eighteenth-century Hawaii—its kings and queens, gods and goddesses, missionaries, migrants, and explorers—a not-so-distant time of abrupt transition, in which an isolated pagan world of human sacrifice and strict taboo, without a currency or a written language, was confronted with the equally ritualized world of capitalism, Western education, and Christian values.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    August 18, 2015

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781494595401
      • File size: 250820 KB
      • Duration: 08:42:32

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      Kaipo Schwab narrates this history of Hawaii from the late eighteenth century, when it was discovered by Captain Cook, to the late nineteenth century, when it was annexed by the United States. Schwab is from Honolulu, and it shows in his reading of the Hawaiian words and names that pepper the text. His melodic voice is even and precise throughout, providing a solid foundation for Susanna Moore's eloquent text. However, his careful pacing is not accompanied by changes in tone or volume for the historical stories of Hawaii's native people. Overall, however, Schwab delivers an appealing reading. E.N. © AudioFile 2015, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      June 1, 2015
      Novelist and memoirist Moore (The Life of Objects) takes inspiration from her childhood in Hawaii to craft an insightful history of the archipelago, from its first wave of settlers in the 6th century through its annexation by the U.S. in 1898. She focuses largely on the tumultuous years following Capt. James Cook’s 1778 discovery of the islands and how contact with the outside world disrupted everything. As cultures clash, several major narratives emerge. The first is the effect of trade and commerce: “The chiefs acquired new desires, which demanded a different kind of labor from their people.” Though island culture was transformed through industry, it was radically upended with the introduction of Christianity: “The fixed world of the Hawaiians, governed by a hereditary ali’i and priesthood with a distinctive system of kapu , suddenly became one of flux, if not chaos.” Moore is honest about the peculiarities of the old ways—“to be Hawaiian before the overthrow of the old gods in 1819 was to live in an unending state of terror”—and she’s equally upfront about the devastation wrought in the aftermath. This is a fascinating and well-balanced look at how a unique culture came to be and the heartbreaking manner of its end. Illus. Agent: Stephanie Cabot, the Gernert Agency.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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