Calabashes and Kings: An Introduction to Hawaii (Tut Books)

This eloquent and hauntingly evocative story of Hawaii is a true classic and is an essential read for any enthusiast of Hawaiian culture and history.

With a sincerity and candor often lacking in books stressing the exotic and unusual, the author says there is no denying that Hawaii presents the usual blend of the lovely and the unlovely and is no more perfect than any other place. He writes of "a one-way street to happy adventure in the South seas; a background of the Polynesian sort, so easy-going and laughter-provoking on the surface, so tragic at its end; green valleys barred with rainbows, and windswept palis."

He write of Robert Lois Stevenson, who found peace in the iridescent Hawaiian Isles; of Mark Twain, who wrote, "No alien land in all the world has any deep strong charm for me but that one." On the tragic side , he includes a very vivid description of the Battle of Kealakekua Bay, in which Captain Cook was killed.

More than thirty fine photographs and maps embellish and enhance this charming contribution to Hawaiian literature and Americana.