ALOHA Where You Like Go? Driving to Satisfaction in a Honolulu Taxi

by Cloudia Charters, David Shapiro (Foreword)

"The Descendants" told the story of Hawaii's landholding elite. "ALOHA Where You Like Go?" provides an insightful glimpse of the more gritty side of Hawaii where most locals live, the real Hawaii of working people, immigrants and their children, a beleaguered but magnificent island society rich in lingering history. The novel tells the story of June, a young newcomer from Philadelphia, as she discovers everything she never expected about "paradise." She starts her Hawaii journey as a fish out of water in the isolated Kona coffee fields before gravitating to bare survival in Oahu's infamous hostess bars, an underworld of drugs, sexuality and motorcycles. Finally, an unexpected encounter while driving a taxi overnights in Honolulu leads her to real understanding of Hawaii and herself. This little volume will tell you a lot more about what makes Hawaii tick than most of the thick travel guides — and you'll get in the bargain a darned good story about personal discovery and life's lessons learned with a Polynesian twist. Much of the story is told in pidgin, the local vernacular that grew out of Hawaii's multi-ethnic sugar plantation era, a mostly spoken language that can be difficult to write. But Charters gets it done in a way that is understandable to nonresidents and still rings true to locals. This is a wise little guide to Hawaii's history, culture and language masquerading as a good story. A good read, especially for vacationers, or those moving to Hawaii, to read on the flight over. Just leave the coconut bra at home.

129 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 8, 2013

Reviews

[Andree Sanborn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an unusual novel that feels like a memoir. It chronicles a young woman's move from Pennsylvania to Hawaii and her growth from anger and despair to hope and love for others. June meets many characters as she transitions from an exotic dancer to a taxi driver to a social worker. I assumed her life bottomed out when she was a dancer and experimented with meth, but I was wrong. When she was a taxi driver, she experienced hopelessness and anger that threatened to consume her life. But she met another woman, older than herself, and wise beyond description. The woman, Aunty Nan, gently taught June how to uncover her true self and be re-born.

The novel is given to travelers on the plane to Hawaii to acquaint them with the real life on the islands, not the life that tourists only see in hotels and beaches. It is filled with the language of the islands and even has a glossary and introduction to explain the language. The language ended being an important part of the book because it added reality and gave it flavor and depth.

I finished this book during a week of chaos and doubt in my own life. It genuinely helped me re-center and calm down and to put my trust in my choices. I envy Ms. Charters' sense of self and her outlook on life. It's a lovely book that I highly recommend.

[Deepak · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent insight into living in Hawaii. Cloudia explains the meaning behind 'Aloha' giving a deeper meaning to the lives of natives.
She also shows how close knit the natives are and are very skeptical of outsiders almost amounting to xenophobia. This despite tourism and tourists being the mainstay of their economy.
The locals are very wary of their culture getting corrupted by crass commercialism and hence the tightly knit community do not accept outsiders easily as one of their own. But of course outsiders or tourists are not ill treated but the relationship is kept at arm's length forever.
This book also is a beautiful account of a girl coming in from Philadelphia and growing up in Hawaii in her quest for independence.

The book is a wonderful read if you like to read about different cultures and human relationships that are almost spiritual.

I highly recommend it.