Sharks in the Time of Saviors
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- Type：Epub+TxT+PDF+Mobi
- Create Date：2021-03-30 11:11:47
- Update Date：2025-09-07
- Status：finish
- Author：Kawai Strong Washburn
- ISBN：1250787319
- Environment：PC/Android/iPhone/iPad/Kindle
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Summary
In 1995 Kailua-Kona， Hawaii， on a rare family vacation， seven-year-old Nainoa Flores falls overboard a cruise ship into the Pacific Ocean。 When a shiver of sharks appears in the water， everyone fears for the worst。 But instead， Noa is gingerly delivered to his mother in the jaws of a shark， marking his story as the stuff of legends。
Nainoa's family， struggling amidst the collapse of the sugarcane industry， hails his rescue as a sign of favor from ancient Hawaiian gods - a belief that appears validated after he exhibits puzzling new abilities。 But as time passes， this supposed divine favor begins to drive the family apart: Nainoa， working now as a paramedic on the streets of Portland， struggles to fathom the full measure of his expanding abilities; further north in Washington， his older brother Dean hurtles into the world of elite college athletics， obsessed with wealth and fame; while in California， risk-obsessed younger sister Kaui navigates an unforgiving academic workload in an attempt to forge her independence from the family's legacy。
When supernatural events revisit the Flores family in Hawaii - with tragic consequences - they are all forced to reckon with the bonds of family， the meaning of heritage， and the cost of survival。
Nainoa's family， struggling amidst the collapse of the sugarcane industry， hails his rescue as a sign of favor from ancient Hawaiian gods - a belief that appears validated after he exhibits puzzling new abilities。 But as time passes， this supposed divine favor begins to drive the family apart: Nainoa， working now as a paramedic on the streets of Portland， struggles to fathom the full measure of his expanding abilities; further north in Washington， his older brother Dean hurtles into the world of elite college athletics， obsessed with wealth and fame; while in California， risk-obsessed younger sister Kaui navigates an unforgiving academic workload in an attempt to forge her independence from the family's legacy。
When supernatural events revisit the Flores family in Hawaii - with tragic consequences - they are all forced to reckon with the bonds of family， the meaning of heritage， and the cost of survival。
Reviews
Jenifer Jacobs
，
Absolutely breathtakingly beautifully written。 The audiobook was immersive。
Amy
，
For some reason the experience of reading this felt like reading a classic。 The distinct writing style， magical realism， themes of family and place and colonialism。 This was very well written and had some scenes that were super emotionally resonant for me。 I personally may have loved it more if there were fewer points of view and the writing style wasn’t my personal fave。 But I think it was extremely well done， and I’m really glad to have read it。
Liv
，
“In 1995 Kailua-Kona， Hawaii， on a rare family vacation， seven-year-old Nainoa Flores falls overboard a cruise ship into the Pacific Ocean。 When a shiver of sharks appears in the water， everyone fears for the worst。 But instead， Noa is gingerly delivered to his mother in the jaws of a shark， marking his story as the stuff of legends。”Reading this book is like floating on the ocean。 You always have a sense that it is powerful， but you don’t always know where you’re being pulled， and there are nar “In 1995 Kailua-Kona， Hawaii， on a rare family vacation， seven-year-old Nainoa Flores falls overboard a cruise ship into the Pacific Ocean。 When a shiver of sharks appears in the water， everyone fears for the worst。 But instead， Noa is gingerly delivered to his mother in the jaws of a shark， marking his story as the stuff of legends。”Reading this book is like floating on the ocean。 You always have a sense that it is powerful， but you don’t always know where you’re being pulled， and there are narrative ebbs and flows。 When the prose swells， there are moments of pure beauty in the writing （see excerpt below）， but there are lulls throughout the middle of the book， where you are hoping for more to happen， or that feel strictly like biding time。 The content of the book has many lenses。 The story is seen through the alternating views of each member of the Flores family over a period of years。 The voices of the three children （later adults） in the story aren’t necessarily distinct voices。 There is a sense of differentiated character personalities， but their narrative styles and voices are slightly homogenous。 Still， these feel like minor flaws to the arc and art of the book。 The book gives beautiful voice to the culture and mythology of Hawai’i with just the right touch of magic realism that neither overpowers the story nor pulls focus from its more important overall theme。 There is a visceral sense of place when on the islands and a yearning for them when the setting is away。 This beauty and imagery is interwoven with the struggle of a native Hawaiian family to keep their place on the island amid rising real estate prices， poverty， overcrowding， and the general takeover by the tourism industry。 The main theme isn’t just that this family and other Hawaiians are losing their hold on their land and birthright， but that the islands themselves are losing their sense of self。 Excerpt:If a god is a thing that has absolute power over us， then in this world there are many。 There are gods that we choose and gods that we can’t avoid; there are gods that we pray to and gods that prey on us; there are dreams that become gods and pasts that become gods and nightmares that do， as well。 As I age I learn that there are more gods than I’ll ever know， and yet I have to watch for all of them， or else they can use me or I can lose them without even realizing it。 Take money: my grandmother’s grandmother’s grandmother， Kānaka Maoli that she was， had no use for paper printed with the silhouette of some faraway haole man。 It gave nothing。 What was needed was food from the earth， housing from the earth， medicine from the earth， a sense of one’s place in the system。 What was provided and what had to be cultivated。 But ships from far ports carried a new god in their bellies， a god who blew a breath of weeping blisters and fevers that torched whole generations， a god whose fingers were shaped like rifles and whose voice sounded like treaties waiting to be broken。 And money was the name of that god， and it was the sort of god that preyed on you， made demands and laid its hands on you with such force as to make the Old Testament piss its pants。 We were made， eventually， to pray to it， whether we wanted to or not。 Your father and I still pray to it now。 Take language。 ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i， which was not written， only passed from one mouth to the next， less letters than the English that soon roared over it， and yet it contained more mana of Hawai‘i than anything that foreign tongue could twist itself into。 What do you do when pono， a healing word， a power word—a word that is emotions and relationships and objects and the past and the present and the future， a thousand prayers all at once， worth eighty-three of the words from the English （righteousness， morality， prosperity， excellence， assets， carefulness， resources， fortune， necessity， hope， and on and on）—is outlawed？ When our language， ‘Ōlelo Hawai‘i， was outlawed， so our gods went， so prayers went， so ideas went， so the island went。 。。。more
Joy （joyous reads）
，
Beautiful and tragic。 Absolutely loved this！
Dave Stauffacher
，
This is a captivating story of a family as it deals with life as a Hawaiian family in modern America （and Hawaii）。 Woven with a mystical theme of a son（or sibling） with magical powers and how the family members deal with this。 First in how his gift creates discord in the family and himself and then with how each family members deals with his death。It is a story that tackles many themes but doesn’t seem scattered or lost in any one of them。 The characters are developed well enough that you can’t This is a captivating story of a family as it deals with life as a Hawaiian family in modern America （and Hawaii）。 Woven with a mystical theme of a son（or sibling） with magical powers and how the family members deal with this。 First in how his gift creates discord in the family and himself and then with how each family members deals with his death。It is a story that tackles many themes but doesn’t seem scattered or lost in any one of them。 The characters are developed well enough that you can’t help but to want to see all of them succeed， heal and find a path forward。 。。。more
Sarah Rossmiller
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Too mystical and supernatural for my taste。 Didn’t capture my attention; the prose just didn’t click for me。 Elements of the story were appealing such as the family dynamics and experiences specific to being Hawaiian， but overall I didn’t enjoy this。
Marielle Pellegrino
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This book wasn’t really for me。 It was a bit of a roller coaster。 Usually， when I was about to get into it， one of the characters would say/do something obnoxious that it would take me right out。
Devin
，
This debut novel by Kawai Strong Washburn centers on an indigenous Hawaiian family navigating the complexities of heritage and survival at the turn of the twenty-first century。 As the book opens， the middle child， Nainoa， is miraculously saved from drowning by a shiver of sharks。 As news of the incident spreads， and as he develops strange new healing powers， Noa becomes a celebrity across the islands; his abilities are viewed as a sign of favor from ancient Hawaiian gods。 His cash-poor parents， This debut novel by Kawai Strong Washburn centers on an indigenous Hawaiian family navigating the complexities of heritage and survival at the turn of the twenty-first century。 As the book opens， the middle child， Nainoa， is miraculously saved from drowning by a shiver of sharks。 As news of the incident spreads， and as he develops strange new healing powers， Noa becomes a celebrity across the islands; his abilities are viewed as a sign of favor from ancient Hawaiian gods。 His cash-poor parents， Auggie and Malia， struggling against the collapse of the island’s sugar cane industry， are suddenly awash in money， gifts， and other tributes from well-wishers。 While their brother is hailed as a savior， the other two siblings， athletic Dean and brilliant Kaui， grown increasingly resentful。 Across more than a decade， as the siblings leave the islands for the mainland US， they appear to be charting separate paths—only to be drawn back together by tragedy。。。。I really loved this book。 I was fascinated and deeply moved by the way the author， who grew up in Hawaii， depicted his homeland in complex ways: as a place of great mystery—of proud ancestors， of powerful gods， of ever-present spirits—and of great pain， of poverty and hopelessness and fractured families。 The prose was also gorgeous: equal parts lyrical and tender， humid and tense。 I learned a lot reading this one。 If you’ve read it I’d love to hear what you think！ 。。。more
Rachel
，
This family's story was a real one， however fantastic it seemed。 They were dysfunctional and disconnected， and also tied together， just like real families are。 There was tragedy on multiple levels， and also some very sweet moments。 Maybe the family drama just hit too close to home for me to enjoy this one like I hoped I would。 Good， but not a feel-good read。 This family's story was a real one， however fantastic it seemed。 They were dysfunctional and disconnected， and also tied together， just like real families are。 There was tragedy on multiple levels， and also some very sweet moments。 Maybe the family drama just hit too close to home for me to enjoy this one like I hoped I would。 Good， but not a feel-good read。 。。。more
Lynne Carlton
，
I am a magical realism fan so the intermingling with authentic Hawaii was a pleasure。 The characters were brilliantly drawn as they suffer through the difficulties of their lives。 I was engrossed by each of them。
Kathleen （itpdx）
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This book packs quite an emotional punch。 I almost quit reading when the story got so sad and bleak that it was hard to take。 There is enough of an uplift at the end to make it worthwhile to stick with it。 A Filipino-Hawaiian family on the Big Island hits hard times when the sugar industry leaves。 One child is saved by sharks after going overboard。 He becomes a thread of hope for the family and maybe for the Islands。 His brother and sister try to find ways to make it。
Diane
，
Gut-wrenching， beautiful， raw， detailed （sometimes too much）， sometimes uncomfortable， supernatural realism - this story is all of these and more。 I was intrigued by this debut novel after attending a Zoom Publishers' Rep Night via my local indie bookstore。 I googled alot as I was reading， and I came away with such a deep sense of Hawaii and the native Hawaiians， their beliefs， their gods and their saviors。 No surprise that the author was born and raised on the coast of the big island of Hawaii。 Gut-wrenching， beautiful， raw， detailed （sometimes too much）， sometimes uncomfortable， supernatural realism - this story is all of these and more。 I was intrigued by this debut novel after attending a Zoom Publishers' Rep Night via my local indie bookstore。 I googled alot as I was reading， and I came away with such a deep sense of Hawaii and the native Hawaiians， their beliefs， their gods and their saviors。 No surprise that the author was born and raised on the coast of the big island of Hawaii。The author did an absolutely amazing job of shifting the narration of this novel between 4 distint and different family members， the Mother， the two sons and the daughter。 Each of them were so different than the other， and each one had a completely unique style， voice and outlook。 Admittedly， I was uncomfortable with some of the scenes。 There is nothing sugar coated here; so if you are looking for a light and fluffy read， this is not the book to pick up。 It took me a bit to get into the full groove of the book， I'd say maybe 1/3 of the way through it all started to connect。 I'm happy that I stuck with it though - there was never a point where I thought I'd put it aside but it took a bit to completely engaged。My favorite character， or voice if you will， is the Mother， Malia。 The narration through her words really put me inside her head and gave such a realistic feeling of what it must feel like to be a mom。 I often thought of how my friends that are moms in real life would relate to Malia and all that she shares with us。 。。。more
Susan
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4。5*
Jennie Canzoneri
，
（2。5-3 stars）This was on so many best of 2020 lists， I was excited to finally read it。 And while I loved reading about Hawaii and the world that was built there in this book， it felt like so many different books combined into one， all at odds with each other。 Was it a sprawling family saga， sibling rivalry and reconciliation， a story of grief or of poverty or sexuality， or was it a supernatural tale？ It was all， but not all。。。well？ At least not for me。 And I kind of thought the end was a mess， t （2。5-3 stars）This was on so many best of 2020 lists， I was excited to finally read it。 And while I loved reading about Hawaii and the world that was built there in this book， it felt like so many different books combined into one， all at odds with each other。 Was it a sprawling family saga， sibling rivalry and reconciliation， a story of grief or of poverty or sexuality， or was it a supernatural tale？ It was all， but not all。。。well？ At least not for me。 And I kind of thought the end was a mess， though I really wanted it to balance out the rest。 。。。more
Claire
，
I finished the book。 Depressing and flat。 I listened which probably gave the book a leg up
Diane
，
4 1/2 stars。 Wow。
Melita
，
A boy saved by sharks sees a Hawaiian family and their idea of what 'home' means collide in this fresh， radiant book。 It's a side to Hawaii far from the cultural tropes you're used to seeing。 There's a visceral sense of the realities we don't see behind the postcards of hula and leis。 There's hardship and poverty but there's also the deep， beautiful， mystical essence of the place; these themes seep into every character's story arc and challenge their place in the world。 It seems they can never e A boy saved by sharks sees a Hawaiian family and their idea of what 'home' means collide in this fresh， radiant book。 It's a side to Hawaii far from the cultural tropes you're used to seeing。 There's a visceral sense of the realities we don't see behind the postcards of hula and leis。 There's hardship and poverty but there's also the deep， beautiful， mystical essence of the place; these themes seep into every character's story arc and challenge their place in the world。 It seems they can never escape the islands that aren't just a physical presence but one that's deep within their spirits。 。。。more
Shelli
，
Solid 4 stars。 Review to come
Leslie Cook
，
I would have never thought to pick this book up if it had not been highly touted。 I am so glad that I did！ At first I thought it was going to be a story of this amazing boy， but the tides turn。 Without giving anything away， what I was left with was the haunting of a family pulled through a modern diaspora only to realize that what the mainland has for Themis not what they need。
Tasha
，
Pretty gritty and raw but also quite engaging。
Lori Dickinson Black
，
I enjoyed the book and the portrait of Hawaii’s history and land told intimately by a native。 The expert way the writer moves between telling the story from five distinct characters was engaging and creative。
Emily
，
I'm not ultimately sure what I thought of this book。 It was very atmospheric， and—like the young characters in it—so much potential。 Also like them， I'm not sure the potential was realized。 There was a point in this book where I wanted to stop; it was too upsetting to watch bad things happen over and over with seemingly no point， just the relentless cycles of colonialism and poverty。 Of course I cried at the end， so I guess that means it affected me。 I'm not ultimately sure what I thought of this book。 It was very atmospheric， and—like the young characters in it—so much potential。 Also like them， I'm not sure the potential was realized。 There was a point in this book where I wanted to stop; it was too upsetting to watch bad things happen over and over with seemingly no point， just the relentless cycles of colonialism and poverty。 Of course I cried at the end， so I guess that means it affected me。 。。。more
Michelle
，
Alot of promise with glimpses of brilliance but just ended flat。 I wanted more of the main character -Noa， to understand his ability to touch other and heal。 I was left wanting。
Carolyn
，
This gives the reader a view of life in Vietnam across several generations and foreign occupations from the perspective of a participant。 This added a dimension prompting me to read on， though there’s really wasn’t a ‘happy’ ending。 I see the news， read reports but don’t see the impact of events on people’s lives
Francesco
，
what an absolutely beautiful work of art。。。looking forward to what Kawai Strong Washburn has to bring us in the future。mahalo nui loa！
Bindi Dharia
，
Excellent read although it dragged in the middle
Erika Powers
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Depressing。 Especially Dean。 Listened to 50% of the way through。 The little sister seems like a college snot。 And Noa hasn't done anything with his healing powers yet。 Dean and the little sister speak with a lot of hedges， like， ok， right， which annoys me even in real life。 I kept waiting for something big to happen， after all， its a story about sharks and Hawaiian gods， but if it does， its taking a long f time to get there。 I was hoping to learn something about HI， or get more than one half-thr Depressing。 Especially Dean。 Listened to 50% of the way through。 The little sister seems like a college snot。 And Noa hasn't done anything with his healing powers yet。 Dean and the little sister speak with a lot of hedges， like， ok， right， which annoys me even in real life。 I kept waiting for something big to happen， after all， its a story about sharks and Hawaiian gods， but if it does， its taking a long f time to get there。 I was hoping to learn something about HI， or get more than one half-thrill from a shark encounter， I know its not Jaws， but its just another boring poor family family。 Hell， poor？！ These kids get to go to college so they're a lot farther away from poor than they know。 I did like the characters had different voices but didn't like it wasn't chronological。 Hard to keep track， and did it matter anyway？ Nothing interesting happened！ 。。。more
Evie Kyritsis
，
I enjoyed experiencing the perspectives of the family members navigating the difference in perceptions of treatment from parents as well as layered with the nature of the socioeconomic issues。The former felt very familiar， and the latter gave me insight to the hardships experienced by many。
Ellen
，
I loved this sad， beautiful， tragic， mystical story of a Hawaiian family。。。their struggles and heartaches， and their eventual reconnection to their traditions。 It is a wonderful novel。。。I highly recommend it。
Louisa
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