Are you a voracious reader who is always reading the latest new release? Or has it been a long time since you read anything besides a bedtime story? A‘ole pilikia as we say in Hawai‘i. No problem. Our reading list can get you started with the Hawai‘i Public Libraries’ summer reading program.
There are rewards for readers of all ages who finish weekly reading goals. For each 60 minutes you read, you’ll earn a virtual badge and an entry into a drawing for four roundtrip tickets to any destination where Alaska Airlines flies! No pressure, but who wouldn’t want to read AND win a prize? If you haven’t signed up yet, you can do it here.
Our list is made of books set in Hawai‘i and they’re all available at Hawai‘i Public Library locations. Some are even available as an eBook or eAudiobook. Once you check them out online, you can read them and don’t have to return anything. You’ll get email reminders of the due date and they’ll simply disappear from your device once the due date arrives. How’s that for convenience? No more overdue fines.
If you love the feel of reading a physical book, you can reserve your book and pick it up at the nearest library. If it’s not in stock, you can reserve it and they’ll transport it from another island free of charge. You’ll receive an email when it’s ready for pickup. If you order a book and don’t pick it up, you’ll be fined. Don’t be a flake. Be sure to follow through on your end.
These books set in Hawai’i are listed in no particular order. All of the authors have ties to Hawai‘i, and it is evident in the books they have written. Happy reading!!
Hula by Jasmin ‘Iolani Hakes, Harper Collins, May 2023
Set in Hilo, Hawai‘i, this is a sweeping saga covering decades through the lens of three generations of women in the Naupaka family, with Hawaiian history, culture, and hula as binding forces in this epic tale.
The Healers by Kimo Armitage, Latitude 20 Books, March 2016
This evocative novel tells the story of a family of traditional Hawaiian healers. With echoes of the past throughout the book, the modern healers must weave nature, man, and the spirit world together to fulfill their callings in today’s world.
This is Paradise by Kristiana Kahakauwila, Hogarth Press, July 2013
This is Paradise is a brutal and profound collection of stories elegantly told about life on Maui, O‘ahu, Kaua‘i, and the Big Island. Each story lays bare the tensions between local and tourist, façade and reality in the islands.
Shark Dialogues by Kiana Davenport, Macmillan Publishing, May 1994
This is an epic saga of an extraordinary Hawaiian family beginning with the meeting of a runaway Tahitian princess and a shipwrecked Yankee sailor in the 19th century. The sweep of history is told through the lives of matriarch Pono and her four mixed-blood granddaughters.
The Three Year Swim Club by Julie Checkoway, Grand Central Publishing, June 2016
“The untold story of Maui’s sugar ditch kids and their quest for Olympic glory.” In 1937 a Maui schoolteacher challenged a group of poverty-stricken Japanese American plantation kids to become Olympians. Because they had no swimming pool, they trained in filthy irrigation ditches and survived a world war. This is their story.
Kona Winds by Scott Kikkawa, Bamboo Ridge Press, January 2020
A gripping detective novel set in 1953 Honolulu, Kona Winds tells the story of fictional detective Francis “Sheik” Yoshikawa, haunted by his military service in World War II, as he wrestles with his personal demons amid the changing landscape of territorial Hawai‘i on the brink of becoming the 50th US state. Kikkawa captures gritty 1950’s Honolulu and keeps the reader’s nose in the book until the murder mystery is solved.
Ka‘a‘awa by O.A. Bushnell, University of Hawaii Press, July 1980
This book is a masterpiece. Bushnell’s intimate knowledge of Hawai‘i is apparent throughout, and his description of the land on O’ahu, especially the Ko‘olaupoko and Ko‘olauloa areas are impressive. As Hiram Nihoa starts out on his round-the-island trip for Kamehameha III, there are loose threads to the plot that leave you wondering. Bushnell skillfully ties everything up at the end. This book immersed me in 19th century Hawai‘i with a realism that made me glad I didn’t have to stay there.
Sharks in the Time of Saviors by Kawai Strong Washburn, MCD Books, March 2020
In 1995 off the Big Island, seven-year-old Nainoa Flores falls overboard a cruise ship into shark-infested waters. Instead of attacking him, one of the sharks delivers Nainoa in its jaws to his mother. Nainoa’s family assumes it is a sign of favor from ancient Hawaiian gods. The book covers the maturing of Nainoa and his siblings into adulthood, and how the family deals with Nainoa’s supernatural abilities over the years. The Flores family is no stranger to tragedy, and the bonds of family, heritage, and survival are the lessons of this book.
The Codebreaker’s Secret by Sara Ackerman, MIRA Books, August 2022
The novel opens in 1943 Hawai’i in the midst of World War II. Isabel Cooper has lost her brother to the war, and she becomes a skilled codebreaker working for the U.S. government to crack the communication codes of the Japanese enemy forces. The story moves forward to 1965 when a high-profile guest goes missing at a famous Big Island hotel and an explosive secret from the war days is uncovered. It’s time to see if a codebreaker can solve the mystery.
An Eternal Lei: A Leilani Santiago Hawaii Mystery by Naomi Hirahira, Prospect Park Books, March 2022
In the middle of the Covid pandemic, Hawai’i was virtually off-limits to tourists. Leilani Santiago and her sisters save a mystery woman wearing an unusual lei from drowning in Waimea Bay. The mystery deepens when the lei is traced to Leilani’s best friend’s family’s flower business. Leilani needs to identify the woman and her ties to the island, but she stumbles upon secrets that could be deadly.
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