Our list of some of the best Hawaiian History books & series in recent years. Get inspired by one or more of the following books.
- Captive Paradise: A History of Hawaii (2015)
- Hawaiian Mythology (1982)
- Dismembering Lahui: A History of the Hawaiian Nation to 1887 (2002)
- Fornander’s Ancient History of the Hawaiian People to the Times of Kamehameha I (2005)
- Surfing: A History of the Ancient Hawaiian Sport (1996)
- Timeline Hawaii: An Illustrated Chronological History of the Islands (2013)
- The Great Book of Hawaii: The Crazy History of Hawaii with Amazing Random Facts & Trivia (A Trivia Nerds Guide to the History of the United States) (2019)
- Lost Kingdom: Hawaii’s Last Queen, the Sugar Kings, and America’s First Imperial Venture (2013)
- Hawaii (2002)
- Hawaii: A History from Polynesian Kingdom to American Statehood (1979)
- Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen (1991)
Captive Paradise: A History of Hawaii (2015)
The most recent state to join the union, Hawaii is the only one to have once been a royal kingdom. After its “discovery” by Captain Cook in the late 18th Century, Hawaii was fought over by European powers determined to take advantage of its position as the crossroads of the Pacific.
Hawaiian Mythology (1982)
Ku and Hina-man andwoman-were the great ancestral gods of heaven and earth for the ancientHawaiians. They were life’s fruitfulness and all the generations of mankind,both those who are to come and those already born.The Hawaiian gods werelike great chiefs from far lands who visited among the people, entering their dailylives sometimes as humans or animals, sometimes taking residence in a stone orwooden idol.
Dismembering Lahui: A History of the Hawaiian Nation to 1887 (2002)
Jonathan Osorio investigates the effects of Western law on the national identity of Native Hawaiians in this impressive political history of the Kingdom of Hawaii from the onset of constitutional government in 1840 to the Bayonet Constitution of 1887, which effectively placed political power in the kingdom in the hands of white busines…
Fornander’s Ancient History of the Hawaiian People to the Times of Kamehameha I (2005)
A reprint of this classic of precontact history tracing Hawaii’s saga from legendary times to the arrival of Captain Cook, including an account of his demise. Originally published as volume II in the "An Account of the Polynesian Race: Its Origins and Migration," this historical work is made available again.
Surfing: A History of the Ancient Hawaiian Sport (1996)
Surfing traces the history of the sport from its beginnings in ancient Hawaii through the mid 1960s. This revised edition of the 1966 classic features extensive illustrations, a new introduction, and articles by Mark Twain and Jack London recounting their observations on surfing.
Timeline Hawaii: An Illustrated Chronological History of the Islands (2013)
This highly illustrated timeline, with over 300 photographs, moves readers through the history of Hawaiian Islands, telling a story point by point until a fuller picture emerges. In this volume are collected the dates and names of the men and women who have affected these Islands, some for the better, some for worse.
The Great Book of Hawaii: The Crazy History of Hawaii with Amazing Random Facts & Trivia (A Trivia Nerds Guide to the History of the United States) (2019)
How much do you know about the Aloha State? There’s so much to learn about Hawaii that even residents of the state don’t know! In this trivia book, you’ll learn more about Hawaii’s history, pop culture, folklore, sports, and so much more! And so much more!As an added bonus, you’ll learn words from the Hawaiian language throughout the book.This book is packed with trivia facts about Hawaii.
Lost Kingdom: Hawaii’s Last Queen, the Sugar Kings, and America’s First Imperial Venture (2013)
“Only one American state was formally a sovereign monarchy.
Hawaii (2002)
Pulitzer Prize–winning author James A. Michener brings Hawaii’s epic history vividly to life in a classic saga that has captivated readers since its initial publication in 1959. As the volcanic Hawaiian Islands sprout from the ocean floor, the land remains untouched for centuries—until, little more than a thousand years ago, Polynesian seafarers make the perilous journey across the Pacific, flourishing in this tropical paradise according to their ancient traditions.
Hawaii: A History from Polynesian Kingdom to American Statehood (1979)
Book by Kuykendall, Ralph Simpson
Hawaii’s Story by Hawaii’s Queen (1991)
The Hawaiian kingdom’s last monarch wrote her biography in 1897, the year before the annexation of the Hawaiian Islands by the United States. Her story covers six decades of island history told from the viewpoint of a major historical figure. Introduction by Glen Grant.
Best Hawaiian History Books Everyone Should Read
We highly recommend you to buy all paper or e-books in a legal way, for example, on Amazon. But sometimes it might be a need to dig deeper beyond the shiny book cover. Before making a purchase, you can visit resources like Library Genesis and download some hawaiian history books mentioned below at your own risk. Once again, we do not host any illegal or copyrighted files, but simply give our visitors a choice and hope they will make a wise decision.
Ancient Hawaii: A Captivating Guide to Hawaiian Human History, Starting from the Polynesian Arrival through the Growth of a Civilization to Kamehameha the Great
Author(s): Captivating History
ID: 3211432, Publisher: Captivating History, Year: 2022, Size: 2 Mb, Format: azw3
Women on Waves: A Culture History of Surfing—From Ancient Goddesses and Hawaiian Queens to Malibu Movie Stars and Millennial Champions
Author(s): Jim Kempton
ID: 3612264, Publisher: Pegasus Books, Year: 2021, Size: 22 Mb, Format: epub
Aloha rodeo: three Hawaiian cowboys, the world's greatest rodeo, and a hidden history of the American West
Author(s): Smith, Julian;Wolman, David
ID: 2731749, Publisher: HarperCollins;William Morrow, Year: 2019;2018, Size: 8 Mb, Format: epub
Please note that this booklist is not final. Some books are truly chart-busters according to USA Today, others are composed by unknown writers. On top of that, you can always find additional tutorials and courses on Coursera, Udemy or edX, for example. Are there any other relevant books you could recommend? Leave a comment if you have any feedback on the list.