This Is Paradise

Vividly imagined, beautifully written, at times almost unbearably suspenseful--the stories in Kristiana Kahakauwila's debut collection, This Is Paradise, are boldly inventive in their exploration of the tenuous nature of human relations. These are poignant stories of 'paradise'--Hawai'i--with all that 'paradise' entails of the transience of sensuous beauty. --JOYCE CAROL OATES This is Paradise gives us a raw view of local color in all of its perplexities and pleasures....[The stories] give us a picture of island life quite disturbing at the heart of things--the other side of paradise. --Alan Cheuse, All Things Considered Gritty, haunting, and suspenseful. This is Paradise navigates an ocean of tension between tourists and islanders in paradisiacal, paradoxical Hawai'i. --Kristy Davis, O, The Oprah Magazine [A] sparkling debut story collection....A writer with one foot in the native Hawaiian community and the other in the mainland mainstream gives us an edgy, unmistakably authentic glimpse of the harder side of island life. Kahakauwila captures in six related stories the striving lives, colorful pidgin dialect, and varied relationships that anchor and challenge her strikingly drawn characters. --Lisa Shea, ELLE [ This is Paradise ] is as breathtaking as a trip up the Na Pali Coast -- not a lighthearted day at the beach, but culturally complex, historically significant, and something special in the world. --Daily Candy Excellent....Accomplished. This Is Paradise [is] a collection from gifted newcomer Kristiana Kahakauwila. -- Sam Sacks, Wall Street Journal Vivid storytelling and unflinching candor make this collection haunting. -- Cleveland Plain Dealer Filled with an energy and outragereminiscent of Jamaica Kincaid....Kahakauwila's debut short-story collection offers a stirring glimpse into the daily lives of contemporary Hawaiians torn between native traditions and the pul