Hawai‘i, a Pictorial Celebration Ellie Crowe Photography by Elan Penn Sterling Publishing Co., 160pp, $14.95
What better adornment for a coffee table than a coffee table book? And what better coffee table book than Hawai‘i, A Pictorial Celebration? This hardback book highlights the beautiful nuances of nature, the authority and history of structure and the vibrant culture of the Hawaiian Islands with picture and prose. The book opens up with a brief but detailed history of the Islands spanning from the islands’ volcanic inception, early inhabitants and contact by Captain Cook through a budding Honolulu and the picturesque Waikiki of the early 20th century. Sepia prints of ancient Hawaiian warriors tell a story of their own. The pictorial journey is grouped into chapters that explore the unique facets of the Islands in depth—volcanoes, natural landscape, early civilization, church and state and the Hawai‘i of today. The vivid photos are enhanced by insightful anecdotes and plenty of bet-you-didn’t-know facts.
This book is a well-rounded introduction to the Islands and is perhaps better suited to a mainland Hawaiiphile than kama‘aina. .—K.W.
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