Category: Asian & Pacific American studies

UH Press around the Web: Summer Snips 2013

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The Summer 2013 issue of Hyphen Magazine (#27 – The Sex Issue) has an interview with Amy Sueyoshi on her book, Queer Compulsions: Race, Nation, and Sexuality in the Affairs of Yone Noguchi. 

Stephen Hong Sohn’s Asian American Literature Fans Megapost blog review for May 31 included one for Relative Histories: Mediating History in Asian American Family Memoirs by Rocío Davis. (Look for the third title from the top.)

There’s still time to donate to an IndieGoGo project to raise money for a CD of 26 original and unique songs inspired by the poetry of the late Wayne Kaumualii Westlake. UH Press published the posthumous 2009 collection, Westlake: Poems by Wayne Kaumualii Westlake (1947-1984).

Robert J. Cabin, author of Restoring Paradise: Rethinking and Rebuilding Nature in Hawai‘i, wrote a related article in Earth Island Journal on successful ecological restoration projects. He also addressed questions on restoration ecology in an article earlier this year in American Scientist, titled “Nature Is Dead. Long Live Nature!” (Full article requires subscription or institutional access.)

Student Migration and the Remaking of Asian America

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Transpacific ArticulationsIn 1854 Yung Wing, who graduated with a bachelor’s degree from Yale University, returned to a poverty-stricken China, where domestic revolt and foreign invasion were shaking the Chinese empire. Inspired by the U.S. and its liberal education, Yung believed that having more Chinese students educated there was the only way to bring reform to China. Since then, generations of students from China—and other Asian countries—have embarked on this transpacific voyage in search of modernity. What forces have shaped Asian student migration to the U.S.? What impact do foreign students have on the formation of Asian America? How do we grasp the meaning of this transpacific subject in and out of Asian American history and culture? Transpacific Articulations: Student Migration and the Remaking of Asian America, by Chih-ming Wang explores these questions in the crossings of Asian culture and American history.

“Wang’s incisive scholarship urges us to rethink the contours of ‘Asian America’ through a sophisticated analysis of ‘foreign students’ as transpacific subjects. By examining the transnational subjectivities and alliances that have been at the center of Asian America since its beginnings, Wang’s analysis helps to move beyond a dichotomous view of diasporism and nationalism. With a historian’s hand reaching deep into the archives and a literary scholar’s sophisticated eyes and ears for language, Wang presents a nuanced analysis of various forms of ‘translation’—linguistic, cultural, psychosocial, political—by foreign students that in turn shaped the ideals and struggles of the Asian American movement. —Mari Yoshihara, professor, Department of American Studies, University of Hawai`i at Mānoa

June 2013 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3642-9 / $46.00 (CLOTH)

UH Press around the Web: May/June Round-up

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McDermott&AndradeCongratulations to John F. McDermott, M.D. on being honored by the American Psychiatric Association with the Alice Purcell McGavin Award in recognition of his distinguished career in child and adolescent psychiatry. Along with Dr. Naleen Andrade, Dr. McDermott coedited People and Cultures of Hawai‘i: The Evolution of Culture and Ethnicity. Read more about the award here.

Hawaii Public Radio‘s Chris Vandercook, co-host of “The Conversation,” interviewed UH Hilo associate professor Kerri Inglis about her book, Ma‘i Lepera: Disease and Displacement in Nineteenth-Century Hawai‘i. The show originally aired May 28 on HPR2 but listen to the segment about 38 minutes into the archived show.Inglis-MaiLepera

In commemoration of Asian-Pacific American Heritage Month, the Asia Society’s Farisa Khalid reflected on the life and work of painter Yasuo Kuniyoshi. She included insight from professor ShiPu Wang, author of Becoming American? The Art and Identity Crisis of Yasuo Kuniyoshi, on Kuniyoshi’s contributions to American art. Read the Asia Blog post and view a video slideshow of the artist’s paintings.

Puu-O-Hulu-Stuart-Ball-20-570x380

Adding to its Samuel M. Kamakau Award for Hawai‘i’s Book of the Year, Kalaupapa: A Collective Memory was recognized by the Historic Hawai‘i Foundation with a Preservation Media award at its annual Preservation Honor Awards ceremony last Friday. Representatives from UH Press and the Native Hawaiian Center of Excellence (JABSOM) were joined by descendants of David Kupele, who was sent to Kalaupapa in 1915.

With summer almost officially upon us, how ’bout a nice hike up a rocky ridge with a fantastic ocean view? No need to work up a sweat to get a vicarious thrill of hiking with Stuart Ball, author of several UH Press guides. Experience it by reading this Exploration: Hawaii post by Coty Gonzales.

Jazz Remix: Gabe Baltazar’s If It Swings, It’s Music

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Baltazar-If It Swings, It's MusicCheck 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.

AAAS Book Awards: Relative Histories Earns Honorable Mention in Literary Studies

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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!)

UH Press at the Association for Asian American Studies Annual Conference, April 17-20, Seattle

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AAAS Annual ConferenceUniversity of Hawai‘i Press will be exhibiting at the Association for Asian American Studies Annual Conference, April 17-20, at the Westin Seattle Hotel in downtown Seattle.

Editor Masako Ikeda will be attending. Please visit us in the exhibit hall, where we will be offering a 20% discount and free shipping in the U.S. (Free shipping applies only to orders placed at the conference.)

See you in Seattle!

Hmong Americans in the Twenty-First Century

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Diversity in DiasporaDiversity in Diaspora: Hmong Americans in the Twenty-First Century, edited by Mark Edward Pfeifer, Monica Chiu, and Kou Yang, wrestles with Hmong Americans’ inclusion into and contributions to Asian American studies, as well as to American history and culture and refugee, immigrant, and diasporic trajectories. It negotiates both Hmong American political and cultural citizenship, meticulously rewriting the established view of the Hmong as “new” Asian neighbors—an approach articulated, Hollywood style, in Clint Eastwood’s film Gran Torino. The collection boldly moves Hmong American studies away from its usual groove of refugee recapitulation that entrenches Hmong Americans points-of-origin and acculturation studies rather than propelling the field into other exciting academic avenues.

Following a summary of more than three decades’ of Hmong American experience and a demographic overview, chapters investigate the causes of and solutions to socioeconomic immobility in the Hmong American community and political and civic activism, including Hmong American electoral participation and its affects on policymaking. The influence of Hmong culture on young men is examined, followed by profiles of female Hmong leaders who discuss the challenges they face and interviews with aging Hmong Americans. A section on arts and literature looks at the continuing relevance of oral tradition to Hmong Americans’ successful navigation in the diaspora, similarities between rap and kwv txhiaj (unrehearsed, sung poetry), and Kao Kalia Yang’s memoir, The Latehomecomer. The final chapter addresses the lay of the land in Hmong American studies, constituting a comprehensive literature review.

January 2013 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3597-2 / $60.00 (CLOTH)

New Book Addresses Sovereignty Issues around the Globe

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Sovereignty
Unparalleled in its breadth and scope, Sovereignty: Frontiers of Possibility, edited by Julie Evans, Ann Genovese, Alexander Reilly, and and Patrick Wolfe, brings together some of the freshest and most original writing on sovereignty being done today. Sovereignty’s many dimensions are approached from multiple perspectives and experiences. It is viewed globally as an international question; locally as an issue contested between Natives and settlers; and individually as survival in everyday life. Through all this diversity and across the many different national contexts from which the contributors write, the chapters in this collection address each other, staging a running conversation that truly internationalizes this most fundamental of political issues.

November 2012 / ISBN 978-0-8248-3563-7 / $45.00 (CLOTH)

Veterans Day Weekend Sale Ends Tomorrow at Noon – 40% Off Select Titles

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UHP Veterans Days Sale 2012

From Thursday, November 8, noon, to Tuesday, November 13, noon (HST), save 40% on these titles at our website:*

*Discounted prices will be visible at website during the sale.

November 2012 Author Events

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Thursday, November 8, 12 noon to 1:15 p.m.
Wendy S. Arbeit shares her experiences in researching Hawaiian cultural and utilitarian objects, her techniques used in revealing their patterns, and how she documented them with detailed line drawings in her award-winning book, Links to the Past: The Work of Early Hawaiian Artisans.

Some of the questions that will be addressed:
What went into tracking down those artifacts now scattered across the globe?
What do the 1,400 illustrations tell you about pre- and early contact Hawaiian culture and the ways it changed in response to Westerners?
What sort of questions are raised by the grouping of so many objects?

The talk is part of the Brown Bag Biography series at the Center for Biographical Research, University of Hawai‘i at Mānoa, Henke Hall 325, 1800 East-West Road. For more information, see the UH event calendar or call 808-956-3774 or email: biograph@hawaii.edu.

Isaiah Walker

Thursday, November 8, 5:00 to 7:00 p.m.
BYU-Hawaii professor and former competitive surfer Isaiah Walker will  give a lecture at Arizona State University on his thought-provoking book, Waves of Resistance: Surfing and History in Twentieth-Century Hawai‘i. Walker explains how Hawaiian surfers have successfully resisted colonial encroachment in the po‘ina nalu (surf zone). In making his case, he also explores empowerment and masculinity, media representation of islanders, identity struggles, and other topics. The talk is open to the public and will be held in West Hall, Room 135, at ASU in Tempe. For more information, see the ASU calendar posting.

Tuesday, November 13, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m.
See below listing under November 18 for George and Willa Tanabe’s Japanese Buddhist Temples in Hawai‘i.

Saturday, November 17, 3:00 p.m.
San Diego resident Leilani Holmes will visit Basically Books in Hilo, Hawai‘i to discuss and sign copies of her recent work, Ancestry of Experience: A Journey Into Hawaiian Ways of Knowing. Born in Honolulu in 1952 to a Hawaiian mother, Holmes was adopted as an infant by a haole (Caucasian) couple who moved to Ohio when she was four years old. The book recounts, explores, and analyzes the author’s quest to reclaim her origins and come to terms with the duality inherent in being an indigenous adoptee. The two-column format of the book mirrors this dichotomy, with a personal, conversational style of narrative on one side, and academic explanatory text on the other.

Saturday, November 17, 4:00 p.m.
Seattle author/poet/artist Alan Chong Lau will be at the Wing Luke Museum’s Tateuchi Story Theatre to join his sister, food writer Linda Lau Anusasananan, as she reads from The Hakka Cookbook, published by University of California Press. (Read a related post on the UC Press blog here.) Alan Lau provided the artwork for the book, done in a similarly whimsical, sumi-e style that illustrates his UH Press-published book of poetry, Blues and Greens: A Produce Worker’s Journal.

Sunday, November 18, 2:00 p.m.
George J. Tanabe and Willa Jane Tanabe will appear at Barnes & Noble, Ala Moana Center, for a signing of their just-released guidebook, Japanese Buddhist Temples in Hawai‘i: An Illustrated Guide. The Tanabes personally visited each of the ninety temples still in existence, and took photographs not only the buildings’ exteriors but of the ornate altars and interior details. Over 360 of these color photos are contained in the book. Descriptions of each temple and explanations of the symbolism of objects and design elements will help temple visitors decipher the meaning behind these physical expressions. Also at this event, information will be distributed on the related exhibit due to open December 1 at the Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i.

Last-minute update: On Tuesday, November 13, 6:00 to 9:00 p.m., George and Willa Tanabe will give a PowerPoint lecture at the Honpa Hongwanji Hawaii Betsuin Annex Temple (makai of the main temple), 1727 Pali Highway. Open to the public, with a $10 fee. For more information, click here for a link to the Dharma Light Project brochure and map, or call 808-536-7044.

Veterans Day Weekend Sale – 40% Off Select Titles

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UHP Veterans Days Sale 2012

From Thursday, November 8, noon, to Tuesday, November 13, noon (HST), save 40% on these titles at our website:*

*Discounted prices will be visible at website during the sale.

New Catalog Available: Hawaii and the Pacific 2013

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New Books 2012-2013
The UH Press Hawai‘i and the Pacific 2013 catalog is now available! To view the 3.5M PDF, click on the catalog cover image to the left.

Highlights include:

*A revised and expanded edition of a popular guide to East O‘ahu’s spectacular nature preserve (Exploring Hanauma Bay: Revised and Expanded Edition)

* An updated classic of Chinese cookery (Mary Sia’s Classic Chinese Cookbook)

* A book of sensible, practical, and doable suggestions about how to work on your life from the founder of Constructive Living (Water, Snow, Water: Constructive Living for Mental Health)

* A fully illustrated guide to Hawai‘i’s Japanese Buddhist temples (Japanese Buddhist Temples in Hawai‘i)

* A look at ecological restoration—the science and art of assisting the recovery of degraded species and ecosystems—in current attempts to preserve Hawai‘i’s native fauna and flora (Restoring Paradise: Rethinking and Rebuilding Nature in Hawai‘i)

* A collection of some of freshest and most original writing on sovereignty being done today (Sovereignty: Frontiers of Possibility)

* A book for westerners puzzled by Micronesian ways—and others struggling to make sense of cultural exchanges they don’t quite understand (Making Sense of Micronesia: The Logic of Pacific Island Culture)

* Hawai‘i author Gary Pak explores the social and psychological turmoil experienced by Korean Americans during and after the Korean War (Brothers under the Same Sky)

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