There are obviously many, many reasons why you oughta book a flight over to Honolulu and check out the Hawaii Book and Music Festival, but looking over the list of speakers and panelists, we kept seeing familiar names–people from Maui, authors who’ve written fantastic books about Maui or great authors we’ve written about. So here they are:
Julie Checkoway wrote The Three-Year Swim Club, a wonderfully detailed and inspired look at the remarkable but seldom-told story of Maui’s own Coach Soichi Sakamoto, who turned a bunch of local kids splashing around in sugar cane ditches into the some of world’s best swimmers in the 1930s and 1940s.
Kathy Collins is one of the founders of Manao Radio, Collins is probably Maui’s best storyteller, which is why she’s appearing on the festival’s Storytellers panel.
David Davis is the author of Waterman: The Life and Times of Duke Kahanamoku, an outstanding examination of Hawaii’s greatest surfing and swimming legend.
Therese Fitzgerald is a zen Buddhist minister here on Maui. She also works as a spiritual care counselor at Hospice Maui.
Patrick Vinton Kirch is Chancellor’s Professor Emeritus at UC Berkeley. His 2014 book Kua`aina Kahiko is a stunning look at the archaeology of Maui’s Kahikinui region.
Arnie Kotler is a book publisher founded Maui-based Koa Books in 2005, which he recently sold. Koa published a number of great titles, including The SuperFerry Chronicles, which is pictured above.
Mark Panek teaches creative writing at University of Hawaii Hilo. He’s written many books, but his Hawaii: A Novel was a real stand-out for us.
Click here for more information on the Hawaii Book and Music Festival, including a complete schedule.
Comments
comments