I didn't know when, if ever, a book would ever attempt to overtake Katherine as my favorite book of all time and although Molokai by Alan Brennert hasn't quite succeeded, it has come darn close and I am afraid has taken over the #2 slot from Outlander. When one cries tears of joy and sadness for the last 150 pages of a 388 page book, you know it has touched a chord. Spanning nearly 80 years from the late 19th Century to 1970, it is a story of epic proportions.
Young Rachel Kalama is taken from her home at the tender age of 7 and by age of 8 is interred at Kalaupapa on Molokai, more commonly known as Father Damien's Leper Colony. Apart from an uncle who is already there, she is all alone. Yet even with her sadness, with her little girl sweetness, she quickly charms everyone she comes in contact with and makes several very special friends along the way including two women who takes on motherly roles who couldn’t be more different from one another. From Rachel’s friendships with the other young girls – who are all there as if the were orphaned, to romances, to mischief she gets herself into, Brennert breathes such life into this wonderful character. So much so that when you read historical accounts of Father Damien’s Colony you fully expect to read her name among the former residents.
Rachel quickly gets into the reader's heart in such a special way, taking a hold of it and not letting go, not even after the last page is turned. She will stay with me for a long, long time. The story is one that made me for once glad for my insomnia as I was able to stay up until 3:30AM finishing. Then I couldn’t wait to discuss it with my husband and fellow readers the next day. I simply can’t recommend this book highly enough. If you love a good story with characters that simply stay with you for a long time, if you love the Hawaiian Islands, if you are more interested in reading a bit more about Hansen’s Disease (as leprosy is now more correctly called) or are simply just wanting a good book that you can’t put down than I urge you to give Molokai a try. My only regret is that I didn’t get it to it sooner. It had been recommended to me about four years ago and had been on my TBR pile for nearly three years. Don’t make that mistake. Read this book and have your heart deeply touched.
Young Rachel Kalama is taken from her home at the tender age of 7 and by age of 8 is interred at Kalaupapa on Molokai, more commonly known as Father Damien's Leper Colony. Apart from an uncle who is already there, she is all alone. Yet even with her sadness, with her little girl sweetness, she quickly charms everyone she comes in contact with and makes several very special friends along the way including two women who takes on motherly roles who couldn’t be more different from one another. From Rachel’s friendships with the other young girls – who are all there as if the were orphaned, to romances, to mischief she gets herself into, Brennert breathes such life into this wonderful character. So much so that when you read historical accounts of Father Damien’s Colony you fully expect to read her name among the former residents.
Rachel quickly gets into the reader's heart in such a special way, taking a hold of it and not letting go, not even after the last page is turned. She will stay with me for a long, long time. The story is one that made me for once glad for my insomnia as I was able to stay up until 3:30AM finishing. Then I couldn’t wait to discuss it with my husband and fellow readers the next day. I simply can’t recommend this book highly enough. If you love a good story with characters that simply stay with you for a long time, if you love the Hawaiian Islands, if you are more interested in reading a bit more about Hansen’s Disease (as leprosy is now more correctly called) or are simply just wanting a good book that you can’t put down than I urge you to give Molokai a try. My only regret is that I didn’t get it to it sooner. It had been recommended to me about four years ago and had been on my TBR pile for nearly three years. Don’t make that mistake. Read this book and have your heart deeply touched.
Posts
No comments:
Post a Comment