PARADE’s Best Books to Read this Summer
“A rich historical novel that illustrates why connection is more important and more vital than ever.” -New York Times bestselling author Lisa See
Daniel Abe, a young doctor in Chicago, is finally coming back to Hawai’i. He has his own reason for returning to his childhood home, but it is not to revisit the past, unlike his Uncle Koji. Koji lives with the … home, but it is not to revisit the past, unlike his Uncle Koji. Koji lives with the memories of Daniel’s mother, Mariko, the love of his life, and the scars of a life hard-lived. He can’t wait to see Daniel, who he’s always thought of as a son, but he knows the time has come to tell him the truth about his mother, and his father. But Daniel’s arrival coincides with the awakening of the Mauna Loa volcano, and its dangerous path toward their village stirs both new and long ago passions in their community.
Alternating between past and present—from the day of the volcano eruption in 1935 to decades prior—The Color of Air interweaves the stories of Daniel, Koji, and Mariko to create a rich, vibrant, bittersweet chorus that celebrates their lifelong bond to one other and to their immigrant community. As Mauna Loa threatens their lives and livelihoods, it also unearths long held secrets simmering below the surface that meld past and present, revealing a path forward for them all.
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A gorgeously written and sensitive story of family, lives intertwined, and the healing power of deep connection. One of my favorite writers for sure.
Gail Tsukiyama is one of my favorite authors.
Beautifully written, but totally lacking plot and any sense of excitement; despite having the town in the path of a volcano.
This book was totally captivating to me because we lived in Hawaii for a number of years. This is a historical book and one that interested me from the get go. The characters were very realistic and the event of the lava flow from the volcano was captivating and reminiscent of our time in Hawaii. There was also a history of the plantations there in this book that was of great interest to me.
Tsukiyama writes some descriptively of the Big Island if Hawaii, the town of Hilo, and the volcanic eruption of the 20’s and 30’s that I felt I was living through these events myself. I feel like I’ve known these characters and that they’ve been a part of my life.
Beautifully written, wonderful characters , gorgeous description.
This was a beautifully written book, with a beautiful cover. The story, which takes place on the island of Hilo, Hawaii, alternates between the years 1918 and 1935. It was easy to become entwined in the lives of the characters, to feel their hope, passion, grief, and longing. Tsukiyama’s gently told story of native Hawaiians takes on a lyrical quality beginning with the title The Color of Air; to the mythology of Mauna Loa, the threatening volcano; to the memories of the past juxtaposed with the present. Vivid descriptions provide expressive and sensory details of the place and the people. This is a book I highly recommend.
Thanks to the Book Club Cookbook giveaway program & HarperVia/HarperCollins Publishers for a gifted copy. All comments and opinions are my own.
3 1/2 rounded up to a 4 for stellar writing
Samurai’s Garden and The Women of the Silk hold very special places in my heart. I was therefore eager to read the author’s new novel.
The novel begins with the arrival home of Daniel, an islander who went to Chicago, became a doctor and after two years of practice is now coming back to Hilo. His uncle Koji is anxious to see him, he played an important part in his upbringing after his Daniel’s biological father left the family. Nori, one of his “aunties” is getting the family home ready for him. He has inherited his mother, Mariko’s, home which has been sitting idle since her death. No one really questions Daniel’s return, which I thought a little strange. At any rate he has a secret that he will share later, the real reason why he left his practice in Chicago.
Maile, another islander, has also returned home. She left to begin a new life on the mainland but is back for her own reasons, which will be explained in the novel. She was Daniel’s high school girlfriend and his first love.
The homecoming is occurring at the time that the volcano Mauna Loa (or Pele as the islanders call her) is erupting. There are many legends surrounding this volcano as she has erupted many times in the past. Daniel himself was born during one of these eruptions in 1907.
Koji and Nori have things that they need to tell Daniel, they had been waiting until the right time, and that time is now.
With so much talk about secrets and with the eruption actually taking place, I had expected some sense of suspense and expectation. Sadly I didn’t get this feeling. The islanders almost seem to take the eruption in stride, going about their everyday lives, barely planning for an exodus if needed. It isn’t until the last quarter of the book, as the lava seems to be heading their way, that there was any sense of anxiety and tension.
The book is beautifully written. The descriptions of the island’s flora were intense and I could almost feel the oppressive heat and humidity. I would have liked to have learned more about the sugar cane plantations, besides the fact that the workers slaved away cutting cane for very low pay. It was interesting to learn that there were Japanese, Chinese and Filipinos that came to Hawaii to work on the plantations and in the fishing industry.
This is a great story of friendship, love, community and heritage which moves at a rather slow pace. I had a few false starts before I started to get into the characters. Although I enjoyed the story, none of the characters really tugged at my heart as they did in the author’s previous novels. I would still recommend this book as a lovely story about part of Hawaii’s history.
I received an ARC of this novel from the publisher through Edelweiss.
A welcome panacea to the times we are living in is how I would describe reading this story of Daniel Abe, a successful doctor in Chicago, as he returns home to Hilo two years after his mother Mariko’s death.
A secret has driven Danial home, though, and I was enchanted by the story Tsukiyama weaves switching between “ghost voices” and “island voices” as the prodigal son and his long-ago community are united again.
A Powerful story of love and pain, told so gently through the eyes of Daniel, Koji, Mariko and Nori, I felt as if I was there, in the lush and abundant fields of Hilo, sharing in the lives of the characters and becoming part of the community. Hoping with each turn of the page that the forces of nature will not destroy their homes and livelihoods and wondering if secrets held so tightly will ever be revealed.
Gail Tsukiyama is the author of six previous novels, including The Street of a Thousand Blossoms, Women of the Silk and The Samurai’s Garden
Thanks to #BookClubCookBook and #GalleyMatch for the opportunity to read this book!