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I was taken with the introduction by Steve Berry about the book as follows:

"Four years of research and three years of writing were needed to produce 'Hawaii.' Its epic scope, length, and breadth proved to be the stamp of Michener's trademark style, one that he would master over the next forty years. Legend has it that he finished 'Hawaii' on March 18, 1959, the day Congress voted to accept the islands as the fiftieth state."

"Millions upon years ago, when the continents were already formed and the principal features of the earth had been decided, there existed, then as now, one aspect of the world that dwarfed all others. It was a mighty ocean, resting uneasily to the east of the largest continent, a restless ever-changing, gigantic body of water that would later be described as pacific."

And so begins the epic tale of James Michner's classic Hawaii. I loved this book and the remarkable history of these Pacific Islands that over the years have meant so much to me and our family, haoles that we may be.

This beautiful book by James Michener tells the history of the Hawaiian Islands until they finally achieved statehood in 1959. The creation of this American state is told through the viewpoints of many characters representing their ethnic and cultural groups in this monumental story. And I must say that it was first the dramatic small tribe from Bora Bora that sets the stage for the epic tale that unfolds before our eyes, but don't lose sight of that history for it will surface again and again. And the mix of people from the Calvinist missionairies that first come to the islands and establish a community that thrived over many generations. And the climax as the last chapter of the book, "The Golden Men," as it follows the many descendants who go on to make important and beneficial contributions to the culture and economy and stucture of the Hawaiian Islands as we finally see Hawaii achieve statehood in August 1959.

Aloha my friends.