For Makalani Pahukla, Coming Home Is a Kaua’i Storm
Makalani Pahukula loves her job as a national park ranger in Oregon. She hasn’t been back home to the Hawaiian island of Kaua’i for a long time. But with a celebration planned for Tutu’s, her grandmother’s, 85th birthday, she books the trip. Being back home is both exciting and unsettling. She feels disconnected with her heritage and forced to defend her time away. And when she finds out that her two favorite cousins, Solomon and Becky, are missing, she decides to search for them. Her involvement, however, is not welcomed. Family secrets, warring factions, and financial problems have led to battles among the relatives. Is Makalani’s intervention helping or hurting?
Mainlanders vacation frequently on one of the Hawaiian Islands, but often aren’t aware of the rich history and culture that defines the natives whose roots run deep. Tori Eldridge is the perfect author to tell this story. As a Hawaiian diaspora like Makalani, she worried she might be out of touch. Eldridge was born and raised in Honolulu and is of Hawaiian, Chinese and Norwegian descent. “After living on the mainland for decades, what could I write that would ring true and show the proper respect?” she writes in a press release about the book. “Little did I know that my mixed-race heritage, deep love of family, and broad life experiences would be the key to writing what I hope is an entertaining and relatable book that honors my people and addresses some of the issues facing kanaka maoli (Native Hawaiians) today.”
Eldridge accomplishes that and more. Readers will come away with a deep appreciation for the Hawaiian community. Dialogue and observations in the indigenous language are sprinkled throughout the book. Fortunately, there’s a glossary that includes a short tutorial and translations. Don’t hesitate to flip back and forth while reading to absorb words and phrases from this unique and beautiful language. There’s also an appendix listing the book’s characters. There are many in this complicated family and keeping track of them is essential to the plot. Despite the police investigation, preparations continue for celebrating Tutu’s birthday. Eldridge’s descriptions of the traditional foods that will be served, including burying and roasting a whole pig, may have some readers looking up recipes. (OK, maybe not for the pig!)
Aside from the culture lessons, Eldridge, author of the Lily Wang mysteries, has constructed a compelling story with fascinating characters, beginning with the two missing cousins. Solomon was a football star in high school, until a catastrophic injury ended his athletic career. With that dream crushed, he’s drifting, drinking too much and unable to craft a plan for the future. The only relative who believes in him is his younger cousin, Becky. When she asks him to go on a hike with her, he can’t resist. But with the two now missing, some are spinning dark theories about what may have happened. Becky, a headstrong teen, had disappeared before. Is she staying with a friend and will show up soon? Was Solomon, 22, having sex with Becky, who is only 17? Solomon’s and Becky’s parents are soon at odds making it difficult for the police, and Makalani, to investigate.
Becky’s parents, James and Linda, own a small store where locals come for supplies. Recently, however, a group of tattooed, pot-smoking young people have started to hang out, playing loud music and taunting shoppers. James knows at least one member has a gun, so is afraid to ask them to leave. Linda, originally from the Midwest, met James when she was vacationing with her family. Besides Becky, they have a younger daughter, Emma. With the store failing and James becoming angry and depressed, Linda sees no future for her family in Hawaii. James worries that she will file for divorce and take his girls to Minnesota.
Solomon and Becky selected the Pihea Trail, a dangerous area for a hike. Even Makalani, experienced in rescue operations, has trouble following their possible path. Calling out, she hears a weak voice respond. Solomon fell from a cliff and landed in thick vegetation. She manages to get him to safety. He tells Makalani that he saved Becky from falling, but couldn’t save himself. He reveals little to the police about what happened, and with Becky still missing, he becomes a suspect. Makalani redoubles her efforts to find Becky before Solomon is arrested. Her plan will place those she loves in danger as they enter an area being controlled by a dangerous gang that has already killed one homesteader.
Eldridge touches on another topic, landownership, that is very much on the minds of longtime native Hawaiians. In Kaua’i Storm, a tussle over who is entitled to own land becomes a generational conflict, a conflict that takes the wise matriarch, Tutu, to settle.
Kaua’i Storm
Tori Eldridge
Top Bigstock photo: Gorgeous Sunrise on Kaua’i Island in Hawai’i
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