The Pohaku: A Novel

Summary

From the award-winning author of Hula, a dazzling saga about the generations of women tasked with protecting the history and place that made them

A young woman lies comatose in a hospital, watched by her estranged grandmother. Mystery surrounds the woman’s fall—did she jump off the cliff, or was she swept away by a wave? Her grandmother suspects it is linked to the pōhaku, an ancient stone that their family was tasked with protecting.

In this novel spanning generations across Hawaii and California, it soon becomes clear that the pōhaku’s story must sur­vive if there is to be any hope of the fam­ily’s reconciliation with their home, with nature, and with each other.

Reminiscent of Yaa Gyasi’s Homegoing, Min Jin Lee’s Pachinko, and Tommy Orange’s There, There, The Pōhaku is an immersive and bold novel about the his­tory, perseverance, and resilience of the Hawaiian people.