Hula by Jasmin Iolani Hakes is a beautiful book. I was fortunate to be granted access to the audiobook by Harper Audio and devoured this story. There is so much to learn in this book. It's a glimpse into Hawaii, its culture, and the variety of traditions. Beautiful is the accurate description for this book, it's a stunning representation with a captivating story.

I don’t know why I savor books the way that I do, but I guess that’s the downside to being a mood reader. HULA is the one book that I saved all summer and I’m so glad I read it at the time I did.

It was such a great read, and included so many details on Hawaiian culture that I found so fascinating. The audio was wonderful, and I loved the narration.

WHAT TO EXPECT
-multigenerational story
-coming of age
-complicated relationships
-themes of forgiveness

*many thanks to Harper Audio and Netgalley for the gifted copy for review

Hula was already a gorgeous book with flowing sentences that build off each other with each page, but the audiobook was read beautifully and was a great, lyrical experience.

This was a phenomenal read. I know the author basically states the facts in this book are there but very condensed versions of the truth, buy boy does the facts stated make a strong impact.

Thank you to NetGalley and HarperAudio for the audio galley to review!

The author, Jasmin Iolani Hakes, states in the Author's Note at the end of the book that this was originally a tribute to her hometown of Hilo, Hawai'i. It is that and so much more. This book clearly evolved into a passionate dedication to the entirety of Hawai'i and to Native Hawaiians. While only inspired by actual history, it is an excellent starter to the discussion of the colonization/theft of Hawaiian lands and the (ongoing) mistreatment of Native Hawaiians. This history and the political battles that have transpired are the main driving point of the fictional narrative the book is centered around, particularly the awful policies regarding blood quantum and who can be given land in Hawai'i.

Hi'i one of our main characters if not *the* main character, struggles with her identity the entire novel and it is solely due to the fact that she doesn't look like a Native Hawaiian. Her "legendary" grandmother Hulali dismisses her and doesn't consider her a grandchild of hers, which gets worse when Hi'i's little sister Malia is born and *does* look Native Hawaiian. Try as she might, Hi'i can be the most incredible hula dancer the world had ever seen and yet Hulali will not look her way. And while Hi'i has the support of her mother (well, mostly--Laka tries to "toughen her up" when she's no longer a toddler and the two grow distant), ultimately she ends up feeling too distant from the Naupaka family, especially when she learns the story of her birth.

This story of the Naupaka family is told to us in three parts--three "verses"--using the collective voice of Hawai'i (which was really cool). The first verse is Hi'i's difficult childhood; the second is Laka's story up to, including, and after Hi'i's birth; and the final is Hi'i's adulthood as she comes to reconcile her identity and with her family. The entire theme is that of inter-generational trauma. That trauma is brought on by the ongoing colonization of Hawai'i and is the reason why we have so much of that history given to us as context. It's not just a political manifesto, it is literally the essence of the story we're being told. For me, personally, it made me even *more* sympathetic to the ongoing effort to give back what rightfully belongs to Native Hawaiians. I feel as though the only ones who will feel like it is "too much" or "too aggressive" will be those who hold (usually white) guilt over being an "interrupter" themselves--a tourist/non-native of Hawai'i. This is something that is still very timely that every outsider of Hawai'i needs to listen to if we care about the preservation of such a beautiful place, people, and culture.

My only problem with the political/historical context is that sometimes it does indeed get in the way of the main storyline, but only in that it takes word count away from it. For instance, I wish we had gotten more of a resolution for the Naupaka women at the end, but it was largely vague and quick to favor the superstore development subplot (what was based on the real-life Walmart development that happened in the 1990s). Since the book is already super long at this point, it makes sense that one or the other had to be cut shorter, and I can understand why Hakes chose to finish her message about Hawai'i independence in full. If, perhaps, there was a bit more editing to condense some earlier sections, we could have gotten a more fulfilling ending for the main story, but it is what it is and at least we got something that was still good!

I'd like to finally say that the narrator of the audiobook, Mapuana Makia, did an incredible job. I love how natural and fluid her narration is and I cannot recommend the audiobook enough, especially to hear the Hawaiian language spoken by an actual Native Hawaiian and to listen to the passion in the voice and hear the talent of bringing characters to life. I'm so glad I picked the audiobook to review because I could honestly listen to Makia all day.

Going into this book I new next to nothing about Hawaii’s culture and the culture surrounding Hula. I loved learning about both of those things through the story and was glad I chose to listen to it as apposed to reading it so I could understand everything how it was supposed to be pronounced.

This is an epic tale about Hawaii and its people. Following generations of women from one family, we see their role as mothers, their place within their community, and their relationship with their idea of home examined. Interspersed with their stories are interesting highlights on the history of Hawaii. The colonization, role of tourism, and rights of the people of Hawaii were all so obviously well researched. I found this history so interesting and definitely had me reevaluating my role as a tourist in Hawaii. Impressive debut novel!

I listened to this one on audio and really enjoyed this unique multigenerational coming of age story. It’s centered around Hula in many ways, but more in the aspect that a hula tells the story of a journey. This is a story of belonging, identity, following your own path, complicated relationships, forgiveness, reconnecting, and so much more. At the same time, there was so much Hawaiian history woven in throughout the entire story. If you’re interested in complex family relationships or Hawaiian history, I would definitely recommend. The book is slower paced overall, but a great journey.

Wonderful story of the eternal struggle between mothers and daughters and the horrendous treatment of the Hawaiians at the hands of US govt. There are many kinds of human bondage and the wrongs committed against the Hawaiian people are shameful. Their lands and heritage stolen in much the same way as Native Americans and African Americans. Readers will be unable to put this novel down and will see the beautiful state of Hawai’i with new eyes.

Highly recommended.

This was a wonderful tale that was so delicately written. The audiobook narration was beautiful and I very much enjoyed the story.

I liked this book very much. I grew up on Kauai and could relate to Hi'i in this story. Growing up with white skin was not easy, not going to lie. I was the minority, I had my friends and since I had been there from a very young age I was considered Kamaʻāina. I loved growing up in Hawaii and consider myself very lucky. I did dance and loved the music, stories, culture, history and food. Whenever you meet anyone from Hawaii on the mainland it goes like this...What island are you from, what school did you go to, who you might know and then how much you miss the food. So many things in this story had me saying that is how it is! I laughed, I got angry and most of all felt the urge to go home for a visit. The narrator was great and I look forward to more stories from Jasmin Iolani Hakes.

Thank you to HarperVia, Harper Audio, and Netgalley for the advanced copy of Hula by Jasmin Iolani Hakes. This book made me think a lot about the responsibility tourists have when visiting other peoples homes, especially places that have such sacred customs and traditions. I listened to the audiobook while reading the print and would recommend that to anyone who can get their hands on both. It helped my brain to see the Hawaiian words while hearing them spoken aloud.

Hula by Jasmin Iodani Hakes is a breathtaking book about family and Hilio traditiion. The story follows Hi'i and her mother Laka, who have a troubled retationship from the start. Hi'i only wants to make her mother Laka proud and as a way she wants to be enrolled in Hula School. Since Laka was a former Miss Aloha Hula, Hi'i thinks this will help get her mother's love and affection. Hi'i was knew she was different from the other children she grew up with. She has pale skin, red hair, and green eyes. Laka never talks about Hi'i's dad or what has happened to him. She assumes that she favors him in skin coloring and that is why she feels unloved and not connected to her mother. The book is emotional when you find out about Laka's past and why she is the way she is and why she treats Hilo the way she does. When.Hi'i finds out the truth about who she is, she leaves the island to go to school in California and there she meets her husband and starts a family. Years later Hi'lo a young widow is back in Hawaii to bring her husband's ashes home to the sea. There she reunites with Laka, and grandmother, who was never really in her life. This book is full of historical facts about Hawaii and the people who live there, are woven into the fictional story line. In the end family is always family no matter what keeps you apart. This would be perfect for book club groups or anyone who wants a good book rich in culture and history.

This book was love at first sight and I couldn't wait to get my hands on it! I mean how gorgeous is that cover? But beyond that, this was a beautifully written novel that was a pleasure to read/listen to. Despite what its name might suggest, the book isn't about teaching hula. Instead it explores the recent history of Hawaii, identity and belonging, motherhood and community through 3 generations of women.
The thing I loved the most about this book is probably how nuanced the characters were in their backgrounds and stances on what it meant to be Hawaiian and parts of their communities, what they thought was best for their home and how to achieve it.
This novel was a great reminder of the oral histories and identities erased by colonization and how much hard work is involved to get them back. I can see a lot of tourists picking this up when they are headed to a Hawaiian vacation and I hope it'll serve as a great reminder on the fact that there is so much more to Hawaii than being a tourist destination and on what is appropriation vs. appreciation.
I loved the narration by Mapuana Makia and I thought she enhanced the experience of this book so much!
Thank you so much to HarperVia and for the ARC and gifted finished copy and LibroFM and Harper Audio for the ALC of this gorgeous novel.

This beautiful sweeping debut will be published just in time to celebrate Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. Hi'i is proud to be a Naupaka, a family renowned for its contributions to hula and her hometown of Hilo, Hawaii, but there’s a lot she doesn’t understand. She’s always been different from her cousins, never met her grandmother and doesn't know who her father is. Worse, unspoken divides within her tight-knit community, (especially her mother and grandmother), have started to grow, creating fractures whose origins are somehow entangled with her own family history.
In hula, Hi'i sees a chance to live up to her name and solidify her place within her family legacy. Told in part in the collective voice of a community fighting for its survival Hula is a spellbinding debut that offers a rare glimpse into a forgotten kingdom that still exists in the heart of its people.

*Special thanks to NetGalley and Harper Audio for this audio e-arc.*

I really struggled with this book before giving up at about 30%, but I think it's more to do with it being an audiobook and less to do with the story itself. I put in a request with my local library to get an ebook copy and I'm looking forward to finishing the book in that form!

3.5 Stars

I really enjoyed the rich history of Hawaii woven into the storyline of this novel, a multigenerational women's fiction about the upbringing of Hi'i and the women involved in her life as she grows up in Hawaii. Listening to the audiobook version, I discovered how much I really don't know about Hawaii history. Although I liked the novel overall, I'm not sure how I felt about the blending of the history with the storyline of Hi'i and Laka. The transition from history of the Hawaii nation to the storyline didn't always feel seamless, and the beginning of the novel felt very heavily laden with pure history and made me wonder when they were going to get to a storyline, if at all. And the ending with the reconciliation between Hi'i and Laka (basically the entire ending, actually) felt very rushed in comparison to the rest of their story. I'm not sure I understood the way the author chose to place the timeline of Laka, with her introduction starting at a luau with her new baby. I think I would've appreciated learning about the background to bringing Hi'i into the story sooner.

Overall, I did enjoy the women's relationships between each other and getting to know them through Hawaiian traditions. The hula descriptions were beautiful! It definitely felt like the author created the storyline so that she could share the difficulties and colonization of the Hawaiian people. This would be a great book for people who really like reading about a detailed setting in their novels.

This was absolutely beautiful! Not only was the intergenerational story well thought out, but the historical education about Hawai'i was invaluable.

This book had all the right ingredients for a masterpiece:
*Historical and cultural context that helps you understand the characters in this book
*Seamlessly weaves in the Island as it's own character
*Family dynamics full of drama, love, pain, forgiveness and so much more
*Rich legacy, and cultural roots that run so deep
*Political Turmoil

I thought I would eat this up as I usually love fiction with a familial, multi-generational voice. I think for me it came down to the cadence and writing style of this book. Its a writing style preference. I found it choppy and hard to follow in some spots and then absolutely lyrical in other parts. Overall, it felt a bit scattered. I will say the Narrator was amazing, and did such a great job! I might try this book again in digital or physcial though, just to see if that makes a difference in how I process the writing.

I loved the story but struggled with the writing style.

This was and Audiobook Arc by NetGalley! Thank you so much :)

Hula is a rich multigenerational narrative set in Hawai'i. I loved feeling swept up in Hakes's storytelling, weaving in and out of generations and the community voice. I felt like I knew these women and their complicated relationships with each other. This book is for anyone who wants a brief introduction to Hawaiian history and complicated mother-daughter relationships.