Spanning several centuries and connecting two distant (and very different) island nations, Hokuloa: The British 1874 Transit of Venus Expedition to Hawai‘i provokes political and military maneuvering, confronts death and disappointment, descends into madness, and rises to heroism—all in pursuit [...]
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The Falls of Clyde is an integral part of Hawai‘i maritime history. The 125-year-old vessel is the only surviving full-rigged, four masted ship in the world; the only surviving sail-driven oil tanker; and the only surviving original member of the Matson fleet. Told through the eyes of the sailors [...]
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First published in 1986 by Bishop Museum Press, Pacific Island Names has become an essential reference and the official source for standard rendering of the names of the myriad islands of the oceanic Pacific. This fully revised second edition features new island maps throughout, now in color. The fa [...]
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Lost Maritime Cultures: China and the Pacific features the extraordinary archaeological discoveries found in southeast China over the past half century. The coastal area of southeast China was home to a multitude of maritime civilizations which flourished from 7000-3000 years ago, but were never re [...]
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Meticulously detailed and well illustrated, this definitive resource on Hawaiian material culture guides the reader through every major element of Hawaiian life, providing detailed descriptions of traditional objects, methods of construction, and traditional use. As a testimony to former Bishop Muse [...]
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My friend Richie from up the street asks me, “When do you find time to write?”

“Late at night is the second best time,” I tell him, “for me anyway.” He waits for the rest of my answer.  ”But my favorite time is before sunrise.  Five a.m.  While you’re still sleeping.”

Richie cringes just at the sound of  ”five a.m.”  ”You set your alarm?” he asks.

“No, I just wake up some mornings and know it’s time to write. I awake the hound (Simone, our Italian greyhound) and we go downstairs together. She goes back to sleep on the sofa and I pour a large mug of Kona coffee and head for the keyboard.

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by Don J. Hibbard, Glenn E. Mason, and Karen J. Weitze As a leading advocate for the development of a Hawaiian style of architecture, Hart Wood (1880–1957) incorporated local building traditions and materials in many of his pr [...]
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One of Watermark Publishing’s authors, Frances H. Kakugawa, started a dialogue with Charles Pellegrino, author of The Last Train from Hiroshima, a book which earlier this year received a great deal of attention for not-so-good reasons. Think James Frey-Oprah Winfrey-A Million Little Pieces-attention.

Frances, a former Hawaii public school educator, felt a very personal connection with Pellegrino’s Last Train, which chronicles the experiences of some of the survivors of the Hiroshima atomic bomb—her parents’ families perished at Hiroshima. When she discovered that there was some controversy over whether the survivors’ accounts were true or not (one of Pellegrino’s sources turned out to have duped the author), she posted an open letter to the author on her blog expressing her dismay.

To her surprise, Pellegrino wrote back to her.

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by DAVID HEENAN 2010 Axiom Business Book Awards, Bronze Medal winner Read the rest of this entry »

Books make fantastic gifts—you can give someone countless gourmet meals, a trip to a far-flung land, transport them to the future or bring them back to their past all in a tidy package.

There’s a book to suit everyone’s taste, they last longer than a box of chocolates, they don’t go out of style, and everyone—young or old—appreciates a good story.

Here are a few gift ideas for this holiday season from Watermark Publishing’s catalog:

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