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Editors to discuss book

By Staff | Jan 13, 2011

KIHEI — “Talking Hawaii’s Story: Oral Histories of an Island People,” a live presentation of this recently published book, will be offered at Kihei Public Library on Saturday, Jan. 15, at 3 p.m.

The free program will be conducted in the Storytelling Room.

Book Editors Michi Kodama-Nishimoto and Warren S. Nishimoto (also edited by Cynthia A. Oshiro) will present a brief overview and introduce two narratives from the anthology that will be read by actors.

The readings will bring to life the words of actual people.

Saturday’s program will feature the narratives “Unity of the Family” by Robert Kiyoshi Hasegawa, the son of Japanese immigrants who was born in 1923 on Lanai.

This narrative will focus on pre-war life on Lanai and wartime hardships faced by the Hasegawa family.

“A Brave One” by Alice Saito Gouveia, who was born in 1918 on Maui, will also be presented. Gouveia helped with her family’s pineapple crop and cared for her younger siblings.

The narrative will touch on the tragic death of Gouveia’s father, the family’s economic hardships and the challenges of running a business, the Economy Store in Paia.

A question-and-answer “talk story” session will follow the readings.

The Maui Friends of the Library is sponsoring this program in partnership with the University of Hawaii at Manoa Outreach College Statewide Cultural Extension Program and the Hawaii Council for the Humanities.

Additional funding is provided by the “We the People” initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities, the Hawaii Foundation on Culture and the Arts, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

This 45-minute program is suitable for ages 12 and older. Contact the library as soon as possible if a sign language interpreter or other special accommodations are needed.

Kihei Public Library is located at 35 Waimahaihai St.; call 875-6833.