Akela in the Park

Akela in the Park

   

Akela in the Park is a seven minute, one act play that I wrote for The Honolulu Theatre for Youth for their Children’s Literature Hawai’i showcase in 2021. It was recorded and webcast on June 4, 2021. It’s now available for free in ebook form.

Akela began as an idea that sprang from something my sister Soozy said about parents in Hawai’i telling kids that they were going camping when they lost their housing. (You have to understand that dark humor is how my family rolls.) Soozy said that she knew a few families in Hawai’i that were able to keep things semi-normal for the kids despite the very real struggles of living in makeshift shelters in beaches, parks, and open areas. It reminded me of the movie Life is Beautiful where a father keeps the horror of living in a concentration camp from his son by telling him they’re playing a game.

My original idea was pretty much dead on arrival. It treated the seriousness of houselessness too lightly and just wouldn’t land the way I wanted. I did  some research, talked with folks, and realized I was in waaaaay over my head.

In the beginning of 2021, I was teaching writing workshops through PEAU Lit over Zoom. We’d meet once a week to talk about creative writing, using your own voice, and how to self-edit. I’d give them a random set of three words to use in a story before each meeting, and we’d share what we came up with. I decided I would write little vignettes about people from my Lauele Universe and share the first draft vs. the “final” and talk about all the hows and whys of the edits.

One character that kept showing up in my vignettes was a kid named Jon. As Jon told me his story, I began weaving some of the ideas I had about houselessness into his experiences. Akela is a combination of  two vignettes. The first was called Sandwich, and the prompts were a sandwhich, a pencil, and broken glass. The second was called Coconut with a coconut, sunscreen, and a comb as prompts.

In 2021, I had the honor of being one of two featured authors at the Children’s Literature Hawai’i Conference, which led to The Honolulu Theatre for Youth reaching out to put together a video performace based on my work. I sent them a bunch of the Peau Lit vignettes and then met with some of their amazing cast and director while I just happened to be on ‘Oahu. Sandwich and  Coconut intrigued them the most, and we workshopped some ideas. The timeline was super short, but working with the actors inspired me, and I begged them to give me the night to send them a new play based on the vignettes. I went back to our rental in Hau’ula and banged out Akela in the Park in three or so hours.

I had to figure out a way to get the characters’ thoughts out to an audience who were watching instead of reading–easy to to in print, much harder in a play or video. Pops suddenly appeared to solve that challenge. As I worked through the play, I also realized that Jon wasn’t the houseless kid–that was a girl named Akela. Akela’s tough, self-reliant, and proud.

Most of all, Akela wants to be seen.

The roots of homelessness / houselessness in Hawai’i are very complex. It’s unlike any other place I’ve experienced. In Hawai’i, two parents can work full time and still not make enough to cover rent for their family. It’s a far deeper problem than can be explored in any play–or series of novels, I think.

But the conversation has to start with someone willing to see, to engage, to share. We need more people like Jon who reach out in genuine friendship.

Akela in the Park is currently free to download. 

#RealRep: Just Dare

#RealRep: Just Dare

“How did you dare?”

After talking with students at Kealakehe Intermediate over the internet for a bit, I read chapter one from ONE BOY, NO WATER, and looked up. Most of the kids seemed stunned. “I’ve never heard anyone read a story that had Pidgin in it before,” one student said.

Another raised his hand. “How did you dare? How did you know you could do that?” Lots of kids nodded. They wanted to know this, too.

I blinked hard. “I just did,” I said. “And if I did, you can too. Don’t be scared. Just do it.”

I’ve been thinking about this exchange a lot this afternoon. It’s why real representation in literature is so important. All kids deserve–need–to see themselves as the center of stories that affirm their lived experiences. Sometimes all it takes is someone telling them it’s okay; they can do this; permission granted.

Pacific Islander Books: MIDDLE GRADE

Pacific Islander Books: MIDDLE GRADE

May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month in the United States (AAPI Month). Through out May, I’m going to be posting about books written by Pacific Islanders that celebrate island culture front and center.  Up first:

MIDDLE GRADE

There’s a wide range of what’s considered middle grade, with the sweet spot as a story that’s on at least a 5th grade reading level with a complex story structure centered around themes and characters  that reflect the interests and lived experiences of 5th through about 9th graders. Crushes are perfect. Anger, loss, or awareness of a bigger world and the challenges it brings are also appropriate, as are wonder, joy, fear, and humor. Like kids developmentally this age, characters are often exploring away from adult safety nets, but there’s an underlying sense that while things may be different in the end, it’s going to be okay. Stories that deal with more mature themes–things that go beyond first kisses or delve into abuse–are generally considered Young Adult rather than Middle Grade.

And yes, those things happen to middle graders, too. However, most booksellers and librarians try to keep these imaginary boundaries drawn on their bookshelves, which is why Middle Grade is usually in the Children’s section and Young Adult is in the nomad-land of Teen Fiction, more commonly shelved by genre.

Without further ado, here are Pacific Islander Middle Grade titles you need to read. Click on the image to see it on Amazon.


In the story, 12 year old Kino and her mother move to Hawaii to live with her maternal grandparents in Kalihi, Oahu. With her grandfather ill and her family facing eviction from their home, Kino discovers that she has an ancient destiny to save both Hawaii and her grandfather by going back in time to 1825. There she meets the young Kamehameha III just prior to his ascension to the throne. After meeting with a kahuna at a heiau, it becomes clear that in order to return to her own time,  Kino must go on a quest for four objects gathered from various parts of Oahu—and of course the young prince is going to come along.

As the adventure quest plot unfolds, Jen deftly weaves in aspects of Hawaiian culture and history. Islanders will recognize kapu customs, protocol, and Hawaiian legends such as night marchers, Pele, Kamapua‘a, sacred waterfalls, ‘aumakua, choking ghosts, and magic gourds and calabashes.

Find it on Amazon.

 

 


‘Ewa Which Way by Tyler Miranda peels back the bandage of what adults think adolescence is like to expose the raw, oozing strawberry of reality. I loved this book for its ability to show all the complicated rules, expectations, and entanglements of being a 12-year-old boy trying to make sense out of adult behavior. Set in ‘Ewa Beach, Hawaii in 1982, Landon DeSilva and his brother Luke know that lickins can fall from the sky like lightning, that a certain side-eye from a parent means a storm’s coming, and that sometimes no matter how long you hold your breath you can’t escape, but have to endure the wave to the end.

For Landon, things are bad at home, but not bad enough. Not enough for child protective services to swoop in and spirit Landon and Luke to a new home, not enough for the cops to do more than show up when his parents’ fights wake the neighbors, and not enough for his mother to realize her marriage is over. Throughout the novel Landon tries to figure out what he’s supposed to do when there’s really nothing he can. His parents’ troubles are deep—there’s guilt, prejudices of class and race, loss, alcohol abuse and valium popping coping mechanisms, unfulfilled expectations, and sheer dysfunction. Landon sees it all with the clarity of a twelve-year-old and his reactions and understandings are heartbreaking and true. Adult readers will read not only the story, but all the words and character motivations between the lines. It’s powerful, immediate, and like a bloody scrapped knee, painfully evocative of the transition between childhood and adulthood.

Find it on Amazon.

 


Other books to consider:

The Calvin Coconut series by Graham Salisbury

The Niuhi Shark Saga trilogy by Lehua Parker
ONE BOY, NO WATER
ONE SHARK, NO SWIM
ONE TRUTH, NO LIE

and upcoming Lauele Chicken Skin Story
UNDER KONA’S BED