Summary: Rachel Kalama was quarantined for most of her life at the isolated leprosy settlement of Kalaupapa--and forced to give up her daughter at birth. Ruth is taken to the Kapi'olani Home for Girls in Honolulu, and adopted by a Japanese couple who raise her on a farm in California. During World War II Ruth and her husband suffer internment at Manzanar Relocation Camp. After the war, she receives a letter from Rachel. As the two meet and come to love one another, Ruth discovers a past she knew nothing about. -- adapted from jacket
NOW A LOS ANGELES TIMES BESTSELLER | NAMED A BEST/MOST ANTICIPATED BOOK BY: USA Today * BookRiot * BookBub * LibraryReads * OC Register * Never Ending Voyage
The highly anticipated sequel to Alan Brennert's acclaimed book club favorite, and national bestseller, Moloka'i
"A novel of illumination and affection." -- USA Today
Alan Brennert's beloved novel Moloka'i , currently has over 600,000 copies in print. This companion tale tells the story of Ruth, the daughter that Rachel Kalama--quarantined for most of her life at the isolated leprosy settlement of Kalaupapa--was forced to give up at birth.
The book follows young Ruth from her arrival at the Kapi'olani Home for Girls in Honolulu, to her adoption by a Japanese couple who raise her on a strawberry and grape farm in California, her marriage and unjust internment at Manzanar Relocation Camp during World War II--and then, after the war, to the life-altering day when she receives a letter from a woman who says she is Ruth's birth mother, Rachel.
Daughter of Moloka'i expands upon Ruth and Rachel's 22-year relationship, only hinted at in Moloka'i . It's a richly emotional tale of two women--different in some ways, similar in others--who never expected to meet, much less come to love, one another. And for Ruth it is a story of discovery, the unfolding of a past she knew nothing about. Told in vivid, evocative prose that conjures up the beauty and history of both Hawaiian and Japanese cultures, it's the powerful and poignant tale that readers of Moloka'i have been awaiting for fifteen years.
Sequel to: Moloka'i.
Includes bibliographical references (pages 305-308).
Rachel Kalama was quarantined for most of her life at the isolated leprosy settlement of Kalaupapa--and forced to give up her daughter at birth. Ruth is taken to the Kapi'olani Home for Girls in Honolulu, and adopted by a Japanese couple who raise her on a farm in California. During World War II Ruth and her husband suffer internment at Manzanar Relocation Camp. After the war, she receives a letter from Rachel. As the two meet and come to love one another, Ruth discovers a past she knew nothing about. -- adapted from jacket
Brennert's Moloka'i (2003), which followed the life of Rachel Kalama, a native Hawaiian sent to the Kalaupapa leper colony on Moloka'i as a child, became a bestseller and word-of-mouth book-club hit. Since then, fans have been clamoring for more about his realistic characters. His latest focuses on Ruth, the baby Rachel and her Japanese husband were forced to give up. More a companion novel than a sequel, Ruth's story, beginning in 1917, is compellingly told and strikes all the right emotional notes. Cherished by the Watanabes, the Japanese couple who adopts her, Ruth still feels like an outsider sometimes, due to her mixed heritage. Her sensitive, compassionate nature carries on into adulthood, making it easy to warm to her. After relocating to California, Ruth's proud family faces internal turmoil and racial prejudice, and their forced internment in camps after Pearl Harbor is rendered in poignant detail. Scenes of her reunion with Rachel and their blossoming relationship are immensely touching. A historically solid, ultimately hopeful novel about injustice, survival, and unbreakable family bonds. Expect high demand.--Sarah Johnson Copyright 2018 Booklist
Author notes provided by Syndetics
ALAN BRENNERT is the author of Honolulu, Palisades Park, and Moloka'i, which was a 2006-2007 BookSense Reading Group Pick; won the 2006 Bookies Award, sponsored by the Contra Costa Library, for the Book Club Book of the Year; and was a 2012 One Book, One San Diego Selection. He won an Emmy Award for his work as a writer-producer on the television series L.A. Law.