Moloka‘i by Alan Brennert was published in
2003. This is not a story about Father Damien, the Belgian priest who spent his
life caring for the Hawaiian people diagnosed with Hansen’s disease. This
disease was also known as leprosy, and
the victims of the disease were confined to the peninsula of Kalaupapa on the
Hawaiian Island of Moloka‘i. Father
Damien arrived in Hawai‘i in 1864. He was diagnosed with Hansen’s disease in
1894 and became bedridden a little over four years later.
Mr.
Brennert’s novel, Moloka‘i, his vision
of daily life in that setting following the time of Father Damien, is
exceptionally well-researched, and excellently written.
A mule ride on the Island of Moloka‘i takes you on a trail that
leads down the face of the Pali cliff to the peninsula of Kalaupapa. The
closest I’ve come to Kalaupapa is the “top-side” of the island. A certain spot
top-side overlooks the area where so many of those afflicted with the disease
lived out their years. The top-side portion of the island rises high above the homes
of residents at Kalaupapa and stretches east toward Maui.
My view of Kalaupapa |
The life
of Rachel, the main character in Mr. Brennert's novel Moloka‘i, is woven throughout this fact-based tale. The novel begins with a stark
illustration of how Hawaiians were “condemned” for being diagnosed with what
was known, for many years, as leprosy.
This
story pulls no punches, relating how the people, many of them young children,
were forced to leave their homes and families to live in substandard conditions
among strangers on an unfamiliar island. The narrative unfolds in turns with
horror, humor, sadness, and triumph. Sickness, both physical and emotional,
permeates the whole.
It was with satisfaction, however, that I read the closing chapters and endnotes of this inspiring novel.
*****
Pretty! I've never taken a mule ride--I've done horseback riding and I rode on a camel once...but neither were as scenic as what you'd see there!
ReplyDeleteStephanie, I never rode on a camel so you're one ahead of me there!
ReplyDelete