Maui the Demigod: An Epic Novel of Mythical Hawai'i

by Steven Goldsberry

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0824812743
• ISBN13: 9780824812744
• Release Date: January 1989
• Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
• Length: 410 Pages
• Weight: 1.90 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 6.0" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

An amazing accomplishment!

I picked this book up on a whim on a trip to Hawaii, and it turned out to be one of the best books I have ever read. This is not a dusty collection of myths put together by an academic. Instead, it's a wonderful, vibrant and unique novel, full of memorable characters and amazing images. Maui is a great trickster hero, and you will alternately cringe and cheer at his antics. This novel deals with adventure, love, evil, magic, divinity, and more -- all of which are resolved in very unexpected ways. (One caveat: some of Maui's adventures are incredibly sensual -- this is not a children's book!)The author does an amazing job of pulling together myths from all over Polynesia and creating his own novelist's vision of a flawed hero's adventures and how he comes to be called a "demigod." It's the Hawaiian "Odyssey" or "Iliad," made very accessible, entertaining, and compelling. If you want to understand Hawaiian culture -- if you like novels with magic and fantasy -- if you're looking for a ripping good yarn -- pick up your own copy of "Maui the Demigod."