MOLOKA'I by Alan Brennert

I read Moloka’i by Alan Brennert for my book club. Even though we officially discuss our books at a monthly meeting, my clubbies and I occasionally (always) chat up our current book while we’re reading it (just can’t keep our mouths closed). So I kept hearing from my friends that this book, set in Hawaii in the late 1800s–early 1900s, was beautiful. I couldn’t figure out how the word “beautiful” could be used to describe a book about lepers being banished to a rugged island. But then I read the book.

Rachel is five years old when her mother discovers a sore on her leg that won’t heal. Fearing the worst (Leprosy, now called Hansen’s disease), her mother makes Rachel wear long skirts to hide the bandages. Eventually Rachel’s ailment is discovered and she is taken away by the health inspector, as was the procedure. She was for a time at a hospital near her family but was sent to Kalaupapa on Moloka’i when she was seven, totally removed from her family and the life which she had known.

Rachel begins her life at Moloka’i with rebellion and sadness but eventually grows to accept her fate. She has a slow-growing form of leprosy and must experience the death of many friends as we watch her grow into a teen, young adult, married woman, and beyond.

She develops special bonds with different women - Sister Catherine, a nun who cares for young girls at Kalaupapa; Haleola, her uncle’s long-time girlfriend and native healer; and the very unusual, worldly woman named Leilani. The friendships inspire and force one to examine morals, beliefs, inner strength, and relationships.

The idea of banishment to an island of lepers sounds sickening, but Moloka'i is really full of love, self-discovery, growth, hope, sacrifice. It’s a very dramatic story, but also gives the reader some Hawaiian history. Because Kalaupapa was indeed a real leper colony on Moloka’i, truth touches.

So, why the word “beautiful”? Well, of course, who can argue the beauty of Hawaii… but that’s not what makes this a story of beauty. The beauty comes from the people - their resilience and hope.

(And don't stay away from this, thinking it melodramatic from my language - hope, love, resiliance, strength. It is a genuine piece of work, no sappy melodrama.)

I must come clean and admit I didn’t like the ending. I would have chosen a different path for Rachel. But when I recall the book (now a month after reading) what shows up in my memory is the beginning and middle story, not the end. Others in my club did however find the ending apt and moving. I must also admit that at least one person in the book club did not enjoy this book. But she will have to write her own review for you to find out her reasons!

JJ