Article Photos

BETWEEN THE DEEP BLUE SEA AND ME by Lurline Wailana McGregor (Kamehameha Publishing, $15).

Like the lapping of waves on a shoreline, "Between the Deep Blue Sea and Me" enthralls slowly, gently, undeniably.

It's an absorbing tale that one can read in a night and, like J.K. Rowling, suggests magic, ghosts and goblins, the latter in the form of prophetic earthquakes.

The novel deals with a cogent isle issue: resolving the search for Native Hawaiian identity.

The plot appears straightforward: A Native Hawaiian woman travels from California to the islands for her father's funeral. She is confronted with a cultural legacy of 'aina (land), 'aumakua (family deities) and rituals. In the vortex of the strong tug of this legacy, she must decide whether or not to return to a prestigious West Coast job and a Caucasian fiance.

Like things Hawaiian, the book's plotline and prose are deceptively simple, but with a multilayered kaona, or poetic meaning, that holds messages for Hawaiians and non-Hawaiians alike.

The book deals with the dichotomy of being Native Hawaiian in a Western world - with the conflicts between Los Angeles and Honolulu; between U.S. laws and indigenous rights; between money, position and power on the one hand, and Native Hawaiian kuleana (responsibility) on the other hand.

A cultural practitioner, author Lurline Wailana McGregor is an upwardly mobile Punahou School graduate, filmmaker and former executive director of 'Olelo Community Television. The book reflects her familiarity with Oahu, with references to Rainbow Drive-In and other sites; her ocean experience as a veteran outrigger-canoe paddler; and her own legacy as a granddaughter of Louise A'oe McGregor. The latter's name is on a 36-year-old perpetual trophy of the storied Kamehameha Schools song contest.

Based on a movie script that Lurline McGregor had co-authored, the novel offers dramatic elements: the tension of choices, suspense, a bit of a love story. And, there are thorny antagonists: a deceptive, ambitious assistant trying to co-opt the heroine's job, and a smarmy museum director exploiting native people to pad his institution's collection.

The book arrived in Maui bookstores Thursday, just in time for Christmas. This Makahiki season gem is easy reading and speaks to all generations: 'opio (youth), makua (parents) and kupuna (elders).

"Between the Deep Blue Sea and Me" is a must-have stocking stuffer; after reading it, float it around the 'ohana in the new year.

Kekoa Enomoto can be reached at kekoa@maui news. com.