Joining
me today is Lehua Parker, author of One
Boy No Water, the first in the Niuhi
Shark Saga, which was released in September 2012. The sequel, One Shark No Swim will be available on
August 10, 2013.
Lehua has
done a remarkable thing. She is in the process of writing short stories around
the Niuhi Shark Saga. Two of them, entitled Birth and Sniff, are up on her website for free download.
These novellas give further backstory into the series, and also digs a bit deeper into the Hawaiian mythology behind
her books. There's something else you need to know as well. Lehua has given two versions of these short stories. Each is written in Standard American English as well as in Hawaiian Pidgin English. I wonder which version you'll read.
On a beautiful Sunday morning in Lauele Town, Hawaii,
all Kahana wants to do is jump in the ocean and catch some breakfast. Too bad
there’s something in the water that wants to eat a skinny old man. Unnerved,
Kahana and ‘Ilima decide to comb the reef and look for ‘opihi instead. What
they find changes everything.
In
One Boy, No Water Uncle Kahana told one version of Zader’s birth. In
this novella more of Zader’s remarkable story is revealed of how he came to be
part of the Westin ‘ohana. While this novella is a companion piece to the
middle grade/young adult Niuhi Shark Saga, the themes and content will appeal
to a more mature audience.
In
Lauele Town, Hawaii, Kona Inoye has a problem he can’t tell anyone about.
There’s something under his bed that craves sweet-smelling things. Kona’s
trying to handle it as best he can, but as a kid things are not always in your
control.
I have invited Lehua to share with us the inspiration behind her books.
Welcome
Lehua!
Aloha,
Ann Marie! Thanks for letting me drop by to talk about my MG/YA series, The
Niuhi Shark Saga, published by Jolly Fish Press. Book 1, One Boy, No Water is available now. Book 2, One Shark, No Swim, will be available September 2013 as a hardback,
trade paperback, and eBook.
The Niuhi
Shark Saga is set in contemporary Hawaii and is about Zader, an eleven year old
boy who was found abandoned on a reef as an infant and adopted by a local
family. On the surface, it’s the story of a kid who doesn’t quite fit in as he grows
up in a loving and pretty typical island home. Zader has some unusual quirks
that make life rough for him, the biggest being he’s allergic to water. Can you
imagine living near the beach and not being able to get wet? For Zader it’s torture
not to surf with his brother. He can’t even go outside without carrying a dorky
umbrella everywhere! As the story progresses, Zader discovers the reason for
his weird allergies and has to make tough choices about how he will live his
life.
People often
ask what inspired the series. Since I grew up in Hawaii, some of the things are
easy to spot; most island kids study karate/lua, dance hula, fly stunt kites,
surf, go to Summer Fun, play in tide pools, and eat shave ice. But the heart of
the story comes from a movie I watched when I was seven years old.
Sprawled on the cool,
polished cement floor in Kahului Elementary School’s cafeteria, all my second
grade friends and I were excited about movie day. This year’s movie was from
the Legends of Hawaii series. When it
first began, we immediately started tittering about the half-naked ancient
Hawaiian kids running around on screen. But a few minutes later no one cared
that people’s okoles were hanging out
because we got sucked into the story about a group of boys a little older than
us who went swimming and fishing together. Mysteriously, one by one they
started disappearing, never to be seen again. Finally an elder says it has to
be a shark.
As seven year olds we lived
in the ocean all weekend long and this was before Jaws. We knew we had to watch out for jellyfish and big waves, but
we rarely heard about sharks. The idea that our playground could be deadly was
new and unnerving.
In the movie, the adults worry
and try to keep an eye on the boys, but BAM! One minute a boy’s picking seaweed
and the next, he’s gone! There doesn’t seem to be anything anyone can do until
finally someone rips the cloak off the shoulders of a boy to reveal a gapping
shark’s mouth where his back should be.
“Aiyah!” we all screamed, “It’s
him! He’s a shark!
Talk about the stuff of
nightmares!
Over decades, parts of the
story would drift through my mind and I would realize some important things
that I missed as a kid, like the idea that the shark-boy’s parents kept this
secret hidden his entire life. Think about that for a moment. He always wore a
cloak while everybody else was running around in loin cloths. How could people
have missed this? Another big idea was that the shark-boy was eating people he knew. His friends were disappearing, not
random strangers.
It made my head spin.
Eventually, all the answers
to the why, how, and what if questions I asked myself about this ancient
Hawaiian legend twisted and turned into the Niuhi Shark Saga. Zader’s story is
not a retelling of this legend, but the idea that danger could hide in plain
sight and be hidden even from itself all began one humid afternoon in a
cafeteria on Maui.
Lehua Parker is originally from
Hawaii and a graduate of The Kamehameha Schools and Brigham Young University.
So far she has been a live television director, a school teacher, a courseware
manager, an instructional designer, a sports coach, a theater critic, a SCUBA
instructor, a poet, a web designer, a mother, and a wife. Her debut novel, One Boy, No Water is the first book in
her MG/YA series the Niuhi Shark Saga. She currently lives in Utah with her
husband, two children, four cats, two dogs, six horses, and assorted chickens.
During the snowy Utah winters she dreams about the beach.
To discover more about
Zader and his world through free activities, excerpts, stories, and book club
guides, please visit Lehua Parker at www.NiuhiSharkSaga.com.
Connect with Lehua Parker
Twitter: @LehuaParker
Goodreads: Lehua Parker
I have to say how much a pleasure it has been for me to get to know Ann Marie Meyers a loving mother who has managed to complete and get published a charming story she calls Up in the Air
ReplyDeleteRecently Ann shared with me just how well her book has been received by the wonderful reviews she is getting in several different places both on and offline.
Given Ann’s warm loving nature I can understand just why parents find Ann’s work something special which they can give to their children as well.
Congratulations Ann Marie Meyers for all your hard work and efforts in bringing to life Up in the Air.
Ken Donaldson.
Thank you for your kind words, Kenneth. It was a pleasure meeting you as well...
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