Author: stephchun

New Catalog Available: New Books Fall 2010-Spring 2011

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New Books 2010
The UH Press Fall 2010-Spring 2011 catalog is now available! To view the 4.1M PDF, click on the catalog cover image to the left.

Highlights include:
* A timely collection of essays on the current state of Hawai`i addressing topics such as education, the environment, tourism, political culture, government, and poverty (The Value of Hawai`i: Knowing the Past, Shaping the Future)
* A fully illustrated coursebook that provides comprehensive instruction in the history and practical techniques of Chinese calligraphy (Chinese Writing and Calligraphy)
* A lavishly illustrated volume that traces the life and work of Hart Wood (1880-1957), an outspoken leader in the development of a Hawaiian style of architecture (Hart Wood: Architectural Regionalism in Hawaii)
* The inaugural volume of the Race and Ethnicity in Hawai`i series (Haoles in Hawai`i)
* New titles in the series Southeast Asia: Politics, Meaning, and Memory (In Buddha’s Company: Thai Soldiers in the Vietnam War; Refiguring Women, Colonialism, and Modernity in Burma)
* An analysis of the origins, development, and distinctive features of Japan’s public spaces (Parkscapes: Green Spaces in Modern Japan)
* A new student-oriented dictionary in the ABC Chinese Dictionary series (ABC English-Chinese, Chinese-English Dictionary)
* A comic novel from the author of one of China’s most famous works of fiction, The Romance of the Three Kingdoms (The Three Sui Quash the Demons’ Revolt)
* An introduction to the principle of dharma, the latest in the Dimensions of Asian Spirituality series (Dharma)

Ann Bayer to Lecture on the Nature of Giftedness

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Ann Bayer, author of Going Against the Grain: When Professionals in Hawai‘i Choose Public Schools Instead of Private Schools, will join Maenette Ah Nee-Benham, Robyn McMullin, and moderator Ann Brandman to discuss “The Nature of Giftedness, The Nurturing of Leaders,” the first in the 2010 Sakamaki Extraordinary Lectures series. The lecture, free and open to the public, will be held on Wednesday, June 2, at 7:00 pm in the University of Hawai‘i’s Architecture Auditorium. For more information, call 956-2729.

What characterizes a gifted child? What is the best way to nurture their talents? What can we learn from the Native Hawaiian concept of those with outstanding abilities? And what does the public school environment have to teach our future leaders? We explore these and other questions with a panel of experts in their fields.

Tomoko Aoyama Honored for Reading Food in Modern Japanese Literature

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Reading FoodTomoko Aoyama is the most recent recipient of the Asian Studies Association of Australia’s Mid-career Researcher Prize for Excellence. Dr. Aoyama received the prize for her work in Reading Food in Modern Japanese Literature, published by UH Press in 2008.

“At first glance, this seems an unlikely subject, but the originality of the topic is fully sustained by the clarity of exposition, the profound knowledge of modern Japanese literature (both in the original and in translation) and the assurance of the author’s voice. A wide-ranging interest in theory never obscures its application to the discussion of particular works and themes. With a broad interdisciplinary approach, the author offers many sharp and relevant insights from anthropology, history, cultural studies, feminism, etc., and her cross-cultural insights are well-based. A feature of the book is the skill with which the English reader is led to appreciate linguistic subtleties in the Japanese.” —Citation from the Prize Committee

Talking Hawaii’s Story at HB&M Festival

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Narratives from Talking Hawai‘i’s Story: Oral Histories of an Island People will be paired with readings from Bamboo Ridge Press titles at this year’s Hawai‘i Book and Music Festival, on Sunday, May 16, 11 am. The event will be taped live for Hawai‘i Public Radio’s “Aloha Shorts” at the Mission Memorial Auditorium, and the public is invited to attend.

Talking Hawai‘i’s Story editors Michi Kodama-Nishimoto, Warren S. Nishimoto, and Cynthia A. Oshiro will be at the UH Press booth later that afternoon from 1:15 to 1:45.

2010 Hawaii Book & Music Festival

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University of Hawai‘i Press will be among the local publishers participating in the Hawai‘i Book and Music Festival next weekend, May 15–16, 10 am–5pm, at Honolulu Hale. Admission and parking are free to the general public.

Several UH Press authors will be attending the festival as panelists or speakers. David Heenan, author of Bright Triumphs From Dark Hours: Turning Adversity into Success, will be at the UH Press booth on Sunday, May 16, 2–2:30 pm, for a book signing.

Click here for a detailed schedule of events.

2010 Ka Palapala Po‘okela Awards

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This year’s Ka Palapala Po‘okela Awards Ceremony was held on April 30 at the Bishop Museum. The awards are presented by the Hawai‘i Book Publishers Association to recognize the finest books published during the previous year.

Two UH Press titles received the Honorable Mention in their respective categories: Ethnobotany of Pohnpei: Plants, People, and Island Culture, edited by Michael J. Balick, earned the award for Excellence in Text and Reference Books, and Talking Hawai‘i’s Story: Oral Histories of an Island People, edited by Michi Kodama-Nishimoto, Warren S. Nishimoto, and Cynthia A. Oshiro, for Excellence in Nonfiction.

Three books distributed by UH Press also garnered honorable mentions: the National Tropical Botanical Garden’s Plants of the Canoe People: An Ethnobotanical Voyage through Polynesia, by W. Arthur Whistler, for the Natural Science category, Pacific Images: Views from Captain Cook’s Third Voyage (2nd ed.), by Eleanor C. Nordyke, for Illustrative or Photographic Books, and Copley Square Press’ Ben Norris: American Modernist, 1910–2006 for the “Aloha from beyond Hawai‘i” category, which is for entries from publishers based outside Hawai‘i.

A complete list of winners is available here.

UH Press Exhibits at the Association for Asian Studies 2010 Annual Meeting

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In late March UH Press exhibited at the 2010 Association for Asian Studies annual meeting in Philadelphia. In addition to its own new and recently published titles, the Press showcased books published by the many Asia publishers it distributes: Ateneo de Manila University Press, the Cornell University East Asia Program, Equinox Publishing (Indonesia) Global Oriental (UK), KITLV Press (Netherlands), NIAS (Nordic Institute of Asian Studies) Press (Denmark), NUS (National University of Singapore) Press, and University of the Philippines Press. View photos taken at the event here.

Next year’s annual meeting will be held in Honolulu.

Understanding Islam in Indonesia

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Understanding IslamThere are more Muslims in Indonesia than in any other country, but most people outside the region know little about the nation, much less about the practice of Islam among its diverse peoples or the religion’s influence on the politics of the republic. In Understanding Islam in Indonesia: Politics and Diversity, Robert Pringle explains the advent of Islam in Indonesia, its development, and especially its contemporary circumstances. The author’s incisive writing provides the necessary background and demystifies the spectrum of politically active Muslim groups in Indonesia today.

“This is not only a comprehensive, well-balanced, and very informative account of past and present developments in Islam in Indonesia but also by far the most readable.” —Jamie Mackie, emeritus professor and visiting fellow in the Indonesia Project, Australian National University

April 2010 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3415-9 / $22.00 (PAPER)

Architectural Regionalism in Hawaii

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Hart WoodHart Wood: Architectural Regionalism in Hawaii, by Don Hibbard, Glenn Mason, and Karen Weitze, is a lavishly illustrated book that traces the life and work of Hart Wood (1880–1957), from his beginnings in architectural offices in Denver and San Francisco to his arrival in Hawaii in 1919 as a partner of C. W. Dickey and eventual solo career in the Islands. An outspoken leader in the development of a Hawaiian style of architecture, Wood incorporated local building traditions and materials in many of his projects and was the first in Hawaii to blend Eastern and Western architectural forms in a conscious manner. Enchanted by Hawaii’s vivid beauty and its benevolent climate, exotic flora, and cosmopolitan culture, Wood sought to capture the aura of the Islands in his architectural designs.

April 2010 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3236-0 / $24.99 (CLOTH)

New Kuroda Title on Women and Buddhism in Premodern Japan

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HokkejiHokkeji, an ancient Nara temple that once stood at the apex of a state convent network established by Queen-Consort Komyo (701–760), possesses a history that in some ways is bigger than itself. Its development is emblematic of larger patterns in the history of female monasticism in Japan. In Hokkeji and the Reemergence of Female Monastic Orders in Premodern Japan, Lori Meeks explores the revival of Japan’s most famous convent, an institution that had endured some four hundred years of decline following its establishment. With the help of the Ritsu (Vinaya)-revivalist priest Eison (1201–1290), privately professed women who had taken up residence at Hokkeji succeeded in reestablishing a nuns’ ordination lineage in Japan. Meeks considers a broad range of issues surrounding women’s engagement with Buddhism during a time when their status within the tradition was undergoing significant change. The thirteenth century brought women greater opportunities for ordination and institutional leadership, but it also saw the spread of increasingly androcentric Buddhist doctrine. Hokkeji explores these contradictions.

“This book makes major contributions to at least three key topics: women and Buddhism, mainstream Buddhism in premodern Japan, and religious institutions as settings for cultural and religious life. It is the first study to provide readers with a detailed and comprehensive overview of a single specific religious site and the women who lived there. Although the number of works that deal with women and Buddhism continues to grow (testifying to the on-going interest in this topic), none to my knowledge have yet attempted such a sustained analysis of a female religious order. While the so-called new Buddhism of the Kamakura period attracts the most attention from scholars, this study demonstrates the importance of the mainstream religious centers of Nara (and Kyoto) for our understanding of religions in premodern Japan.” —William M. Bodiford, University of California, Los Angeles

April 2010 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3394-7 / $50.00 (CLOTH)
Studies in East Asian Buddhism, No. 23
Published in association with the Kuroda Institute

How Zen Became Zen Now Available in Paperback

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How Zen Became ZenThe paperback edition of How Zen Became Zen: The Dispute over Enlightenment and the Formation of Chan Buddhism in Song-Dynasty China, by Morten Schlűtter, is now available.

“Its solid, sophisticated, and original research is undeniably outstanding. Schlütter presents us with many innovative and insightful observations and conclusions on the doctrinal and soteriological issues behind the enlightenment dispute, which greatly enhance our understanding of the development of Song Chan Buddhism. His exhaustive search and use of all available, relevant primary materials and well-crafted application of philological and sociohistorical approaches are especially remarkable. The achievements of this excellent work will serve to inspire the field for many years to come.” —H-Buddhism

April 2010 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3508-8 / $27.00 (PAPER)
Studies in East Asian Buddhism, No. 22
Published in association with the Kuroda Institute

Gender and Body in Japanese Women’s Fiction

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The Other Women's LibThe Other Women’s Lib: Gender and Body in Japanese Women’s Fiction, by Julia C. Bullock, provides the first systematic analysis of Japanese literary feminist discourse of the 1960s—a full decade before the “women’s lib” movement emerged in Japan. It highlights the work of three well-known female fiction writers of this generation (Kono Taeko, Takahashi Takako, and Kurahashi Yumiko) for their avant-garde literary challenges to dominant models of femininity. Focusing on four tropes persistently employed by these writers to protest oppressive gender stereotypes—the disciplinary masculine gaze, feminist misogyny, “odd bodies,” and female homoeroticism—Julia Bullock brings to the fore their previously unrecognized theoretical contributions to second-wave radical feminist discourse.

“Julia Bullock’s lively study fills a significant lacuna in our understanding of feminist theoretical development prior to the women’s lib movement of the 1970s. Dealing with three of the most fascinating and challenging authors of the era, Bullock’s sustained literary analyses are adroit, illuminating, and informative. Her study is lucid enough to open itself to bright undergraduates, but provocative enough to engage seasoned scholars of modern literature.” —Rebecca Copeland, author of Lost Leaves: Women Writers of Meiji Japan

April 2010 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3453-1 / $25.00 (PAPER)

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