Overview

A 2019 New York Times Top Summer ReadFinalist, Oregon Book Award 2020 Liz Prato combines lyricism, research and humor to explore her role as a white tourist in a seemingly paradisiacal land that has been largely formed and destroyed by white outsiders. Hawaiian history, pop culture, and contemporary affairs are masterfully woven with her personal narrative of loss and survival in linked essays, offering unique insight into how the touristic ideal of Hawai'i came to be, and what Hawai'i is at its core.

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9781732610309

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Reviews

This book is a love letter to the land and people of Hawai'i, a secular devotional to a place that has woven its way into Liz Prato's heart. Breathtaking. -Lidia Yuknavitch, author of The Chronology of Water and The Book of Joan A brilliant meditation on cheeseburgers in paradise, Liz Prato's fearless and tender investigation of our complex relationship with Hawai'i will blow your mind. Hula dancers, aloha shirts, surfing, and the idyllic tropical vacation will never look the same. -Karen Karbo, author of In Praise of Difficult Women, and the Kick Ass Women series For fans of Sarah Vowell and Kaui Hart Hemmings, Liz Prato's essay collection is a must-read that explores the islands' mythos and reality. In Volcanoes, Palm Trees, and Privilege we witness a deeply personal tale of love, loss, and honest accounting as the author comes to understand her relationship with the islands through the crucible of family. -Kristiana Kahakauwila, author of This Is Paradise

.. .a complicated love letter to a place and powerful reckoning of a life. - Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild and Tiny Beautiful Things For fans of Sarah Vowell and Kaui Hart Hemmings, Liz Prato's essay collection is a must-read that explores the islands' mythos and reality... - Kristiana Kahakauwila, author of This Is Paradise .. .a secular devotional to a place that has woven its way into Liz Prato's heart. Breathtaking. - Lidia Yuknavitch, author of The Book of Joan Liz Prato's fearless and tender investigation of our complex relationship with Hawai'i will blow your mind. Hula dancers, aloha shirts, surfing, and the idyllic tropical vacation will never look the same. - Karen Karbo, author of In Praise of Difficult Women Volcanoes, Palm Trees, and Privilege is not only a breezy and appealing primer on how to negotiate both Hawai'i in all its astonishing variety and the enormous advantages and nagging burdens of privilege; it's also a moving memoir about familial loss and the reconstitution of an essential version of the self. Liz Prato is beautifully smart about how disempowerment works, and how to combat it. -Jim Shepard, author of Book of Aron and The Tunnel at the End of the Light

For fans of Sarah Vowell and Kaui Hart Hemmings...a must-read that explores the islands' mythos and reality...as the author comes to understand her relationship with the islands through the crucible of family. -Kristiana Kahakauwila, author of This Is Paradise ...Liz Prato is beautifully smart about how about how disempowerment works, and how to combat it. - Jim Shepard, author of The World to Come

Author Information

Liz Prato is also the author of the short story collectionBaby's on Fire: Stories published in 2015(Press 53). Her work has appeared in over two dozen literary journals, including The Rumpus, Baltimore Review, and Salon. She is Editor at Large for Forest Avenue Press. Liz teaches in Portland and at literary festivals across the country. She lives in a house in the woods with her husband, an indie bookseller and writer.

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