Moloka'i by Alan Brennert

June 17, 2008
Book suggested by Missy, meeting hosted by Missy

This meeting was a little different than the others in that we did not use prepared questions to stimulate our discussion. We used assorted props (punch bowl, water, seashells, floating flowers) to symbolize the island and our take on the circumstances of the characters. Good job Missy!

We first discussed our preconceptions of leprosy, and each of us revealed what we learned about it from the book. Most of us had heard of the debilitating illness and even knew about leper colonies, but associated it with biblical times rather than relatively recent history. Few of us knew that the disease continues to persist today in some areas of the world, and even has occasional incidences in the U.S. Missy had done some research and filled us in on some current theories as to its causes, as well as treatments.

Next, we each took a character and talked about their hardships and losses and how they dealt with them. We talked about the resilience of the characters, especially Rachel. We also discussed that many of the hard times were faced by the characters even if leprosy were taken out of the picture. After that, we talked about something we found uplifting about each character. Some of the themes that came out of this discussion were hope, love, friendship, and enduring in spite of their circumstances.

In evaluating the book, it was a favorite for some of our readers, and not good for others. Some found uplifting moments and really appreciated some profound statements and outlooks conveyed by the author. They found the book to be a page-turner and liked the way true historical facts were woven through the plot. They found a beacon of hope in what they read. They saw love, generosity, and hope in a beautiful natural backdrop.

Others thought the book was terribly, terribly sad and depressing. Rachel was faced with one heartache after the other. They found the combination of events such as separation from her parents, the rejections, the death of her husband, and the discovery that her daughter also endured captivity to be too much of heavy burden to read about. Some thought that the book should have had a glossary, or at least a pronunciation key to make our reading of Hawaiian words easier.

We all agreed, though, that this book had outstanding character development and that we did learn some things while reading the book. Some had a problem with the story line, but most of us thought the author’s writing style and skill were above average. Overall the book had a very good rating by the group.

Alan Brennert's website: http://www.alanbrennert.com/