Light in the Crevice Never Seen

by Haunani-Kay Trask

Reviews

"It is stunning to read that this is the first publication of a book of poems by a Native Hawaiian. For mainlanders unaware of the racial issues in that apparent island paradise, Trask's work is an eye-opener. In heavily cadenced, musical language, Trask explores the social realities affecting Native Hawaiians today, from youthful suicide to loss of language, from verbal racism to physical violence. But there is also in her work a deep connection to the islands' beautiful, ocean-ringed land and to the sustaining strengths of family and of love. Fierce words from a woman known for her dedication to her people."-Booklist

"Light In The Crevice Never Seen is the first volume of poetry ever published by an indigenous Hawaiian in the mainland US. For a debut collection, it is extraordinarily angry. An activist and an academic, Trask resents what she sees as the subjugation of Hawaii by the Japanese and the Americans, and she is deeply chagrined at the development of tourism, which she believes to have accelerated the decay of native island culture and language. While her view of Hawaiian history and politics will be of interest to outsiders unfamiliar with the islands and while Eleanor Wilners concise introduction helps put many of these issues into sharp focus for the reader few who are not already sympathizers will be moved by Trasks shrill, two-dimensional verse, which amounts to a kind of Polynesian agitprop."-Kirkus

Genres: Poetry, Indigenous, Fiction

106 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Haunani-Kay Trask was a Hawaiian activist, educator, author, and poet. She served as leader of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement and was professor emeritus at the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

Reviews

[Hannah Spencer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think all tourists coming to Hawaii should read this book. And then have someone explain to them what it all means, so they really get it.

She's supposed to be "raging," and I do get that. But to me, her poetry sounds more full of hurt than of rage.

Couldn't stop reading it.

[Teshamae · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book of poems gives a fascinating look at how native Hawaiians view so many Americans. Trask longs for the cultural heritage that has mostly been lost following the (forced) colonialism of this island by the US. Her beautiful poems are much less in your face than her prose, and accomplish the job of educating people about the history and present in Hawaii.

[Will · Rating 4 out of 5]

A powerful collection of poems about the author's native Hawaii. Many poem are accompanied by succinct and informative notes providing background and history on the colonization of Hawaii and oppression of Native Hawaiians. I especially enjoyed the poems from the middle section often highlighting the difficult situation of many Hawaiians forced to work for resorts that do not care about their culture. Haunani-Kay Trask's poems are succinct and gorgeous.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

The is probably the best piece of indigenous writing I have read. If you are interested in the plight faced by the Hawaiian people when they were colonized by America-you should read it. Not for the feint of heart though, she is very straightforward.

Deb

[Ching-In · Rating 2 out of 5]

I hoped to like this more than I did -- I thought that the notes accompanying the poems were more interesting (specific in language etc) than some of the poems. Makes me want to read her non-fiction/prose though!

[Joan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trask's love for her land, and rage against the injustice of its occupation fire these poems.

[l · Rating 3 out of 5]

Racist white woman
Colonization
Sons
Na wahine noa
When the rain comes

[C · Rating 4 out of 5]

Favorite poems:
When the Rain Comes
Racist white woman
Colonization

[Ellena Ruiz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have so much pain in my body and I want to grind up colonizers with a mocajete

[Hollis · Rating 3 out of 5]

We can’t stalk and take / bleed the night // squeeze hysteria / from burning stars” - from "Long-Term Strategies"

There is a clear relation between Trask's scholarship and the themes taken up in her poetry: criticism of (eco)tourism and neoliberalism; subjectivities informed by Hawaiian landforms; and political insight founded upon cultural resurgence--most explicitly grounded by the use of Hawaiian concepts. Unfamiliar readers will appreciate the inclusion of pronunciation guides and definitions--they may also find something of value in the notes provided for many of the individual poems. Right now, I prefer Trask as a prose writer but I'm going to read another volume because there is potential here. Your mileage may vary and I'd mostly recommend this to people who are, like me, already a fan of the writer's other work. Her style reminds me of Sonia Sanchez a bit.

Favorites: “Woman” / “Long-Term Strategies” / “Ko’olauloa” / “I Go By the Moons”

[Eliza · Rating 5 out of 5]

So good. So glad to have read this. Furious, sensual, sensitive, incendiary. And incredibly generous: the glossary and explanatory notes may have been more standard for poetry books in the 90’s (you certainly don’t see them much today), but still she has taken the time to invite us in.

This is an understated gift: in providing the reader with this supplemental reading, Trask is entrusting us with deeper understanding of her people and her homeland and her pain. She is also implying: you have no excuse to ignore the message now. Get out get out get out.

[Ada]

***Sucked in by:***
How to Swallow a Colonizer: Or, What I Learned from Haunani-Kay Trask by No‘u Revilla

[Syntaxx · Rating 4 out of 5]

Like Toni Morrison said: "It seems to me that the best art is political and you ought to make it unquestionably political and irrevocably beautiful at the same time."