by Lehua Parker | May 7, 2013 | Adult Fiction, Book Reviews & Announcements, Pacific Literature
As a mail carrier in Kaneohe, Hawaii, Louise Golden brings a little aloha to the people along her route. When elderly Conchita Santos doesn’t meet her at the mailbox for the first time in two years, Louise goes looking. The house is unlocked, Pipsqueak the dog is unfed, and Mrs. Santo’s purse is still inside. Fearing the worst, Louise files a missing persons report and begins her own investigation, an investigation that leads to murder, a movie set, new shoes, a French manicure, and a hand-carved tiki with a secret.
Not your everyday week in paradise no matter how stellar the weather.
Almost Paradise, a Louise Golden Mystery by Laurie Hanan is a breezy afternoon beach read, an entertaining escape to sunny Hawaii. The protagonist, Louise Golden, is unmoored, drifting through life after a devastating loss. Nothing seems very permanent in Louise’s life. Through routines that include folk dance groups, piano sing along dates, Scrabble games, and peanut butter sandwiches Louise connects to the world through the family she creates. It’s busy, but not really fulfilling until she reaches out of her comfort zone and begins to grow. I’ve got the feeling that learning to make plumeria leis is just the start.
Almost Paradise, a Louise Golden Mystery by Laurie Hanan is published by Savant Books and Publications, LLC and is available in paperback and eBook from Amazon and Barnes & Noble. Be sure to look for book two, How Far is Heaven.
Connect with Laurie Hanan
Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Almost-Paradise-Laurie-Hanan/dp/0983286132
Blog: http://westoftheequator.wordpress.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/LaurieHanan
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/5246648.Laurie_Hanan
by Lehua Parker | May 6, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
nīele
(NEE-el-leh) (nvs) Nosey, to keep asking questions, busybody, curious in a rude way.
Example
After a summer spent avoiding our nīele questions about his lack of girlfriends and shepherding multi-bus stop excursions to the Honolulu Zoo, he’s counting the hours until he’s back at college and away from small town Lauele. ~ One Boy, No Water
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
by Lehua Parker | May 2, 2013 | Character Haiku
His lines bold neon,
mine delicate lace. Who will
be our teacher’s pet?
~Zader
by Lehua Parker | Apr 30, 2013 | Adult Fiction, Book Reviews & Announcements, Pacific Literature
It’s not surprising that the latest census figures show that there are far more Hawaiians living outside of Hawai‘i than in it. Pepper Bibeau, the central figure in For Every Action There are Consequences by Gail M. Baugniet, fits into the pattern of islanders leaving for economically greener pastures, but trying to keep a bit of aloha in their lives.
After serving as a nurse in Vietnam, Pepper finds herself investigating insurance claims in 1968 Chicago, a time of racial unrest and social change. Along with unraveling the truth about medical claims and insurance fraud Pepper has to solve the murder of a friend killed while wearing Pepper’s coat. Wondering if the murder was mistaken identity, Pepper’s investigation leads her to explore things as diverse as sickle-cell anemia and drug trafficking.
Readers of crime fiction and mystery will feel at home here. It’s fast paced and easy to read, full of small details that pin it to the late 1960s. Descriptions of social norms and Pepper’s feelings about her Hawaiian identity being lumped into other ethnic groups was spot on. As late as the 1980s my sister’s modeling agency in Utah had her listed as ‘light black’ because ‘Hawaiian’ wasn’t on their radar no matter how often she corrected them. Pepper’s experiences in Chicago remind us of how far we’ve come.
What intrigued me most were the interactions Pepper had with her Hawai‘i ‘ohana. The Pidgin dialogue is used sparingly and to good effect. I really want to know more about Pepper’s son and the family raising him in Hawai’i!
Good thing book two in the series, Deadly as Nature, Envy Spawns Grief, is now available. I won’t have long to wait.
For Every Action There are Consequences and Deadly as Nature, Envy Spawns Grief, the first two books in the Pepper Bibeau Mystery series by Gail M. Baugniet, are self-published and available as paperbacks and eBooks on Amazon.
Connect with Gail M. Baugniet
Blog: http://gail-baugniet.blogspot.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GailMBaugniet
Twitter: @GailMBaugniet
Goodreads: http://www.goodreads.com/author/show/4756053.Gail_M_Baugniet
by Lehua Parker | Apr 29, 2013 | Learning ‘Ōlelo
confunit
(con-FUN-it) Exclamation of frustration. Literally confound it.
Example
“Double-confunit with kūkae on the side,” he said. ~Uncle Kahana
Note: ‘Ōlelo is a Hawaiian word meaning language, speech, word, etc. To see the current list of Hawaiian and Pidgin words, definitions, and usage please click on
Connect with Laurie Hanan
