Check out this post on Aloha Got Soul about Gabe Baltazar Jr. and take a look/listen from one of his vintage LPs from 1979, recorded with a then-young group of musicians he played with at the Cavalier (located on Kapiolani Boulevard, way back when). Read Gabe’s autobiography, If It Swings, It’s Music, for more on the “Cavalier Days” (pages 157-159) and other great jazz highlights, all in Gabe’s inimitable talk-story style!
For more on Gabe and his music, revisit our post from last May.
The annual Ka Palapala Po‘okela Awards are presented by Hawai‘i Book Publishers Association to honor Hawai‘i’s finest books and their authors, illustrators, designers, and publishers. This year’s awards presentation is scheduled for Friday, May 10, 5:30 to 8 p.m., at the Hawai‘i State Library, 478 South King Street. The Library is cosponsoring the awards as part of their Centennial Anniversary celebration.
Titles with a 2012 copyright date were eligible this year. Here are our nominees:
Native Paths to Volunteer Trails: Hiking and Trail Building on O‘ahu, by Stuart M. Ball, Jr.
(Excellence in Special-Interest Books)
If It Swings, It’s Music: The Autobiography of Hawai‘i’s Gabe Baltazar Jr., by Gabe Baltazar Jr. with Theo Garneau
(Excellence in Nonfiction)
An American Girl in the Hawaiian Islands: Letters of Carrie Prudence Winter, 1890-1893, edited by Sandra Bonura and Deborah Day
(Excellence in Nonfiction)
I Respectfully Dissent: A Biography of Edward H. Nakamura, by Tom Coffman
(Excellence in Nonfiction)
Loulu: The Hawaiian Palm, by Donald R. Hodel
(Excellence in Natural Science)
Ancestry of Experience: A Journey into Hawaiian Ways of Knowing, by Leilani Holmes
(Excellence in Hawaiian Language, Culture & History)
Kalaupapa: A Collective Memory, by Anwei Skinsnes Law
(Excellence in Hawaiian Language, Culture & History; Excellence in Nonfiction; Excellence in Design)
Hawai‘i’s Mauna Loa Observatory: Fifty Years of Monitoring the Atmosphere, by Forrest M. Mims III
(Excellence in Natural Science)
The ‘Ukulele: A History, by Jim Tranquada and John King
(Excellence in Special-Interest Books)
The Painted King: Art, Activism, and Authenticity in Hawai‘i, by Glenn Wharton
(Excellence in Special-Interest Books)
Kudos to all!
At last week’s annual meeting of the Association for Asian American Studies in Seattle, the AAAS Book Awards (for titles published in 2011) were celebrated with a Friday reception in the exhibit hall, as well as at the general awards banquet. Relative Histories: Mediating History in Asian American Family Memoirs by Rocío G. Davis received an honorable mention in the category of Literary Studies. Professor Davis traveled from Hong Kong to attend the conference, so was on hand to accept the award.
(Relative Histories is 50% off during our 2013 Spring Sale that ends April 25!)
Whether you’re in or near New York, Carlsbad, D.C., or Kaunakakai, please join UHP authors at their events!
Thursday, April 11
6:30 to 8 p.m.
Bianca Bosker will be at the China Institute, NYC, to speak on her intriguing new book, Original Copies: Architectural Mimicry in Contemporary China, and the phenomenon of “duplitecture.” Click here for event details and to purchase tickets ($10 member / $15 non-member).
For more on this fascinating topic:
Read the Atlantic article Duplitectural Marvels: Exploring China’s Replica Western Cities
Listen to an interview of Bianca Bosker by Chris Gondek of Heronandcrane on Portland State’s KPSU.
Saturday, April 13
2:00 p.m.
Head over to the Museum of Making Music in Carlsbad, California for “Sincerely, Ukulele,” featuring Jim Tranquada’s book talk on The ‘Ukulele: A History, followed by a performance by ‘ukulele artist Brittni Paiva. For details and to purchase tickets, click here.
Sunday, April 14
In a mash-up of sorts, two UH Press authors will present short lectures as part of the National Cherry Blossom Festival‘s two-day anime marathon, which will feature all 26 episodes of Shinichiro Watanabe’s Samurai Champloo. Both talks are free and will be held in the Smithsonian’s Freer Gallery of Art.
11:00 a.m.
“Ukiyo-e Pictures and the World of the Pleasure Quarters”
Julie Nelson Davis, associate professor in the Department of the History of Art, University of Pennsylvania, and author of Utamaro and the Spectacle of Beauty.
3:00 p.m.
“Picaresque Tales, Travelers and Lawbreakers”
Constantine Vaporis, professor and director of Asian studies, University of Maryland Baltimore Campus; author of Tour of Duty: Samurai, Military Service in Edo, and the Culture of Early Modern Japan.
Wednesday, April 24
5:30 p.m.
Anwei Law will sign her monumental work, Kalaupapa: A Collective Memory, at Kalele Bookstore & Divine Expressions in the heart of Kaunakakai, Moloka‘i. Currently a resident of Seneca Falls, NY, where she works as the international coordinator of IDEA, she will be visiting Hawai‘i during most of May–watch for a post on next month’s events.
Two book launches are scheduled this month for UH Hilo associate professor of history Kerri A. Inglis — one in Honolulu and one in Hilo. Her newly published work, Ma‘i Lepera: Disease and Displacement in Nineteenth-Century Hawai‘i, sheds light on the Kānaka Maoli who contracted leprosy and were sent to the remote peninsula traditionally known as Makanalua, on Molokai’s northern shore. The book offers compelling evidence of how the disease and its treatment altered Hawaiian perceptions and changed the way Kānaka Maoli viewed themselves—affecting their connections to each other, their families, their islands, and their nation.
Both events are free and open to all interested in attending the talk/signing. Books will be available for purchase and complimentary refreshments will be provided.
Friday, March 15, 2013
6:00 to 8:00 p.m.
Native Books/Na Mea Hawai‘i
Join us at the newly renovated shop at the ‘ewa end of Ward Warehouse.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
12:30 to 2:00 p.m.
University of Hawai‘i at Hilo, Campus Center 301
The event is part of the monthly UHH English Department Brown Bag series of public discussions.
Next month Professor Inglis will also sign books on Wednesday, April 3, 1:00 p.m. at Basically Books in Hilo, as part of the store’s celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Merrie Monarch Festival.
Beach and shoreline expert John R. K. Clark will speak on the topic of his most recent book, Hawaiian Surfing: Traditions from the Past, at two public programs:
Thursday, March 14, 2013
6:00 to 7:30 p.m., Atherton Hālau, Bishop Museum
The illustrated lecture is part of the museum’s “Traditions of the Pacific” educational program series. Free admission for museum members; $10 for general admission. To reserve a space, call (808)847-8296, email [email protected], or RSVP online.
Wednesday, March 27, 2013
5:30 to 7:00 p.m. at West Hawai‘i Civic Center, on Kealakehe Parkway
(74-5044 Ane Keohokalole Hwy, Kailua-Kona)
As part of the “Hanohano ‘o Kona – Honoring Kona” community lecture series, John Clark’s Hawaiian Surfing talk is presented by Kona Historical Society, in cooperation with the County of Hawai‘i. Free and open to the public.
This week the Waialua and North Shore community looks forward to this fun fundraiser for their public library.
Thursday, March 7, 6:30 p.m.
O‘ahu North Shore authors will discuss their recently published books at the annual Friends of Waialua Library Authors’ Night. Among the presenters this year is master jazz saxophonist Gabe Baltazar Jr., who will “talk story” on his wonderful memoir, If It Swings, It’s Music, and play a tune or two (or three) with a guitarist friend that is sure to be the highlight of an entertaining evening. As the Friends’ newsletter words it: “We won’t promise, but we are hoping that this gracious and generous man will give us a sampling of the jazz playing that made him famous.” Even without the music, Gabe is a treasure!
Joining Gabe at the same Authors’ Night are fellow Waialua residents George and Willa Tanabe to speak on the subject of their newest book, Japanese Buddhist Temples in Hawai‘i: An Illustrated Guide. The Tanabes could fill (and, in fact, have filled) an entire evening discussing their fascinating work that resulted from researching all 90 extant Japanese Buddhist temples in the Hawaiian islands. Given that the program features two additional authors (Waimea Williams/Aloha, Mozart and Courtnie Chang/Kolohe ‘Iole), they will give an abbreviated version.
The program is free and open to the public. For more information, call (808) 637-8286.
Jim Tranquada, author of The ‘Ukulele: A History, will speak at a couple of events in the southern California area — one taking place tomorrow (sorry for the short notice) and the other in April. In each he will be paired with ‘ukulele musicians to create entertaining celebrations of the versatile instrument. The Brittni Paiva concert should be especially awesome!
Saturday, February 23, 2013, 2:00 to 3:00 p.m.
Grant R. Brimhall Library, 1401 East Janss Road, Thousand Oaks
Musician/teacher Tom Kuznkowski will lead the kanikapila (jam session). Bring your ‘uke and join in! For more details, download the flyer here.
Saturday, April 13, 2013, from 2:00 p.m.
Museum of Making Music, 5790 Armada Drive, Carlsbad
Mark your calendars to head over to Carlsbad for “Sincerely, Ukulele,” featuring Jim Tranquada’s book talk, followed by a performance by ‘ukulele artist Brittni Paiva. For details and to purchase tickets, click here.
Even though 2013 is undeniably well underway, reviews and stories from fall 2012 can still make good reading. Here are some we missed posting earlier.
Waves of Resistance author Isaiah Walker was interviewed by Daniel Ikaika Ito/Contrast Magazine for Raynorsurf.com, dispelling not only “the burnt-out, Hawaiian surfer stereotype” but the ivory-tower professor stereotype, as well.
The October 2012 canonization of Saint Marianne focused worldwide attention on Kalaupapa, Moloka‘i, as did this article in Syracuse, New York’s The Post-Standard that quotes Anwei Skinsnes Law, author of Kalaupapa: A Collective Memory.
Glenn Wharton’s The Painted King: Art, Activism, and Authenticity in Hawai‘i was reviewed in the new open-access eJournal of Public Affairs. Read the September 2012 review here.
West Hawai‘i Today published a wonderful review geared for Kona residents of Loulu: The Hawaiian Palm in its December 16, 2012 edition. (Note: The photo next to the review shows the plant discussed in the second article appearing on the page.)
Honolulu Weekly‘s Winter Book Issue served up reviews worth repeating of several UHP titles.
• “How ‘Bout Gabe?” on If It Swings, It’s Music: The Autobiography of Hawai‘i’s Gabe Baltazar Jr.
• “Strumming Histories” on The ‘Ukulele: A History
• “Under Western Eyes” on An American Girl in the Hawaiian Islands: Letters of Carrie Prudence Winter, 1890-1893
• “Exiles at Home” on Kalaupapa: A Collective Memory
• “Lit Up by Language” on Sky Lanterns: New Poetry from China, Formosa, and Beyond
OK. Onward from here!
On Saturday, January 19, 2:00 p.m., SFSU associate dean Amy Sueyoshi will appear at the Japanese American National Museum for a reading, discussion, and signing of her book, Queer Compulsions: Race, Nation, and Sexuality in the Affairs of Yone Noguchi. In advance of her talk, JANM’s Discover Nikkei online network has published an in-depth interview by Andrew Way Leong (Northwestern University), posted in two parts.
Click here to read part 1, then link to part 2 from there (or simply click here).
Dr. Sueyoshi will also give a talk at the San Francisco Public Library on Tuesday, February 26. For more details, see the SFPL calendar.
A review of Queer Compulsions published in this month’s The Gay & Lesbian Review, which calls the book “…an important study. It is also worthwhile as a fascinating portrait of biracial and same-sex relationships at a pivotal time in American history.” An equally positive review appeared earlier in Nichi Bei Weekly.
Atmospheric Science Librarians International (ASLI) has selected Hawai‘i’s Mauna Loa Observatory: Fifty Years of Monitoring the Atmosphere for the ASLI’s Choice 2012 Award in the History category. The book was praised for its “engaging perspective on the scientists, discoveries, and ground-breaking atmospheric measurements done at Mauna Loa Observatory.”
Author Forrest M. Mims III will attend the official presentation on Wednesday, January 9, 2013 during the American Meteorological Society annual meeting in Austin, Texas. (Mims recently wrote two articles on Dr. Robert Simpson, the founder of the Mauna Loa Observatory, who celebrated his 100th birthday last month.) ASLI’s Choice is an award for the best book of 2012 in the fields of meteorology / climatology / atmospheric sciences. Visit the ASLI website for more information on award criteria and past winners.
As a member of the Hawai‘i Book Publishers Association (HBPA), University of Hawai‘i Press will participate in two Honolulu events hosted by fellow publishers this month.
Saturday, December 8, 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Holiday Warehouse Sale
Local book publishers will feature their new releases, bestsellers, and holiday-themed titles at special prices. UH Press will focus on a selection of our most recent books on Hawai‘i. Come join the fun at the Bess Press Warehouse, 3565 Harding Avenue, in Kaimuki (park at the municipal lot across the street). Other participating publishers include host Bess Press, Bamboo Ridge Press, Bishop Museum Press, Calabash Books/Belknap Publishing, Kamehameha Publishing, and Watermark Publishing.
Wednesday, December 12, 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m.
Downtown Holiday Book Fair
This brief but power-packed event will be an opportunity for busy downtown workers to check off their holiday gift-giving lists! As above, we’ll bring our latest Hawai‘i titles, plus a few surprises. Look for the pop-up fair at the Cades Schutte Building lanai, in front of 24-Fitness and Territorial Savings, 1000 Bishop Street (‘ewa-mauka corner of King and Bishop Streets). Other participating publishers include host Watermark Publishing, Bamboo Ridge Press, Bess Press, Calabash Books/Belknap Publishing, Island Paradise Publishing, Kamehameha Publishing, and Slate Ridge Press.
For more information, email Carol Abe in the UH Press marketing department.
