This has been sitting on my shelves six whole years, and I finally got around to reading it. Wish I had sooner! I loved Kane's [b:Ancient Hawaii|1080631|Ancient Hawaii|Herb Kawainui Kane|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1387708050s/1080631.jpg|1067366], and this is just as dear. It was more than I expected--with a mix of folklore, historical documentation, and personal experience, this collection gives readers a unique sense of the goddess. m/ Uncle Herb.

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Read Harder: Book published in the decade you were born ( )

I purchased this for research purposes, as I wanted to learn more about Pele beyond the Wikipedia entry. (It's frustrating and amusing how online searches for Pele are bogged down by results on the soccer star.)

It's a short book at 64 pages, but really quite excellent as a resource. It focuses on tales of Pele going back to the creation myth of Polynesia and how she came to Hawaii as her people did. Pele's interactions with her siblings and the people of Hawaii echo other world mythologies--it often comes down to love triangles, seduction, jealousy, and subsequent explosions of lava. More modern tellings of Pele are fascinating, though, from the defiance of the Christian Princess Kapi'olani to 20th century sightings of an old woman in peculiar settings. Even the author had an odd experience regarding a painting of his. This tales have the vibe of a ghost story; the logic of the situation is presented, but there's still a lingering question about what really happened.

Kane's paintings are featured throughout the book and really add extra depth. He does fabulous work. ( )

Slim volume about Pele the goddess of Hawaii's volcanos. Beautiful illustrations. ( )

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