I picked this one up because of the subtitle: A Story of the Hawaiian Leper Colony. See, my dad served a mission for our church in Hawaii during the late 1960s. Among other places he served — the Big Island, Waikiki, Maui — he served on Molokai and visited the leper colony there. I don’t remember many of the stories he told (another reason to write them down, Dad!), but I do remember that he was very moved by his experiences with the lepers. So, I was curious to see what Lisa Cindrich (who is neither Hawaiian, nor lives there — she’s in Kansas, of all places) would do with their stories.
I thought the book was a really powerful read. It took a while to get in to — it’s based in the 1870s, not long after the colony was established by the Hawaiian government and the main character, Liliha, is not at all sympathetic. Or at least isn’t for a very long time. There were times in the first several chapters that I felt like putting it down and not coming back. Not because it was bad, but because I just couldn’t stomach the anger, or the pain, or the descriptions of the lepers.
The book got better as the story went on. And the anger and hatred are understandable. Cindrich had a Christian woman character, and while at times she seemed cloying, I think in the end she served a good purpose to balance out the anger and hatred Liliha and another character — Kalani — felt for their situation and each other. The most pathetic and depressing character was Pauahi: a woman who let Liliha (who’s 13, I think) live with her, but essentially made Liliha her servant, depriving her of much, not the least of which was food. And she kept saying Liliha should be grateful for all that she does for her. That the condition of the place would drive someone to act like that is truly despicable.
The ending was predictable and somewhat cliche, but I let it go. Even with that, it’s an excellent book.
The Book Nut 
Well, this makes two for two. I’ve really enjoyed both the books that I’ve read solely on your recommendation. I was somewhat disappointed that Liliha didn’t develop more compassion at the end. At least she seemed to start. Maybe there is room for a sequal. I was very impressed with how accurate the author was. Since I have been to Kalaupapa and known people there who had leprosy, I was most interested in how well the author depicted the disease and the conditions at Kalaupapa, at least the pre Damien time. I don’t think we should forget just how terrible leprosy was from the beginning of time until the mid 20th century. It is rather remarkable that we are already forgetting. “Jesus healed 10 lepers. yawn. That’s nice.” And I’ve got to believe that she has at least been to Kalaupapa. She nailed the experience of climbing up the pali perfectly. I did that once and flew up the other times I went there.
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I loved this book! When I was staying with my grandparents for a week, I went to the Safford library and browsed through the shelves. I picked up he book, started to read it, and finished it within 3 days. I was only 10-11 when I read this book. This shows that this story is great and touching for all readers that read Liliha’s story at Kalaupapa, big and small.
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I loved this book! When I was staying with my grandparents for a week, I went to the Safford library and browsed through the shelves. I picked up this book, started to read it, and finished it within 3 days. I was only 10-11 when I read this book. This shows that this story is great and touching for all readers that read Liliha’s story at Kalaupapa, big and small.
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