Red Wind

by Ian MacMillan

In The Red Wind, Ian MacMillan writes vividly of Hawaiian family life on windward Oahu in postwar Hawaii. The story centers in the poignant irony of Kenika, a haole of unknown parentage and background who adopts the ways of the Hawaiian, becoming a Hawaiian himself and marries into a Hawaiian family. His children, however, move outward into Western American culture. His daughters marry haoles and move to the mainland while his son becomes caught in the drug culture and ultimately loses his Hawaiian identity in homelessness. At the center of the novel is Kenika's learning how to build canoes in the old way, immersing himself in the intricacies of the craft and the religious spirit which attends it. MacMillan takes us into the rich physical and emotional life of his characters in this remarkable novel which transcends four generations and takes us from Hawaii just after World War II to the nineties.

Paperback

Published February 1, 1999

Reviews

[Kari Gali · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a great book to pick up more on Hawaiian culture. Beware that there is quite a bit of swearing, it may take time to get through the Hawaiian language used, and quite a bit is written in Hawaiian Pidgin. The other thing that makes this book a little difficult to read is that 2 stories from 2 different time periods are being told simultaneously (eventually they meet).

[Elijah · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very simple book, but a masterpiece. It covers Hawaiian traditional canoe making and the change of Hawaii from post-WWII to the present.