Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher of HarperCollins, and the author Jasmin Iolani Hakes for an ARC in exchange for an honest review. Iolani manages to weave in-between historical events and the personal and how they intersect with one another. Iolani's usage of historical events contextualizes the reader's understanding of Hawaii and the lives of the character. Iolani shows a thorough historical understanding to the reader. Besides the historical context, Iolani crafts a family saga between Laka, Hi'i, and later Hi'i's daughters. Iolani creates a pathos between Laka and Hi'i's relationship. In general, the mother and daughter relationships stand out as the strongest within the novel. If nothing else, the work is a testatement to the relationships between women, mother and daughters, and Hawaii. Even while Iolani's focus is on women and mothers and daughters, Iolani's characterization of men, fathers, and male partners is still worth mentioning. I enjoyed reading Iolani's usage of pidgin and the fact that the novel doesn't provide a glossary either. A glossary could be present in the final copy edition, but I sincerely hope that it doesn't. This is also the first Native/Indigenous Hawaiian novel that I've read. While there's non-fiction Native/Indigenous Hawaiian work that I'm familiar with, stories and fiction remain important. Fiction and books as a form have advantages over non-fiction and can introduce readers to perspectives they otherwise would be ignorant of. Iolani engages in the family saga form and elliptical storytelling and time period skip. While sometimes effective and necessary, I wondered if the form should have remained more focused at certain time periods than others and if spending more time in those time periods would have fleshed out the plot and characters more.

Beautifully written drew me right into Hawaii and the history of the family of hula dances.Emotionally moving involving I enjoyed this saga from beginning to end highly recommend.#netgalley #hula

“Hula” was a beautifully written story about the people of Hawaii and how dancing hula held generations of family together. This is not typically the type of book that I read, but I thoroughly enjoyed the family epic which spanned many years in Hawaii. From hula, to the food and culture of the Hawaiian people, I loved learning about it all.

I am and have been in love with Hawaii and its culture for as long as I can remember. It has only been recently however, that I learned the truth about colonization and how America "took over" Hawaii. This was not something we were taught in school, only the date it became a state- not the process. It was dehumanizing how the Americans came in where they were neither welcome nor wanted, and in the typical way, bullied their way to get what they wanted. Interwoven in this story is the incredible history of Hula, which is far more than just a pretty dance that tells a story, along with the tale of deep family bonds broken by that tradition. It was fascinating and I loved every page.

I was interested in reading this book because I love Hawaii and wanted to learn more about it. I thoroughly enjoyed it and was not disappointed. Thanks for letting me check it out!