Nanea: The Spirit of Aloha (American Girl® Historical Characters)

Daughter enjoyed this book and read through it in one sitting

Good content!

Sweet story. Granddaughter age 8 1/2 calls me during week to read. Has to Read 10 minutes/d. It’s great for her level and a bit of a challenge also. She loves learning some Hawaiian words also. Highly recommend!

I’m happy Good book

Great for 8 year old.

Nanea Mitchell, 9, and her friends are interested in winning a contest hosted by the local newspaper, but when Pearl Harbor is attacked, their Hawaiian life and priorities change. This is a good story for introducing Pearl Harbor to young readers. (I plan to use it as a supplement to a history lesson for my homeschooled 4th grader.) It shows how war affected the civilians living in Hawaii who endured the fear of future attacks, nightly blackout, curfews, and martial law. It also doesn’t omit the racism and xenophobia that led to the internment of Japanese-Americans like some texts do. At the back of the book is a section with historical background and photographs of Hawaii in the aftermath. There’s also a glossary of Hawaiian words. This is a chapter books with just a few color illustrations so geared for independent readers. (Grades 3-5 would be a fitting audience.) Good quality paperback with thicker semi-glossy pages. I really like the feel of these pages and how easy they open at the crease/spine. They are sturdier than traditional paperbacks. The only downside is that the book ends a bit abruptly. I was expecting a little more closure. It seems this is not entirely a standalone as Nanea’s story continues in Hulu for the Homefront.

Molly is my favorite American Girl character, so the World War II era being covered again from another point of view really interested me. Nanea: The Spirit of Aloha covers the bombing of Pearl Harbor as a girl living in Hawaii might have experienced it, but in a way that seems age-appropriate. For example, Nanea's dad and brother don't really go into a lot of details about the horrors they have seen. At the same time, very real things happen to Nanea, such as her family's Japanese friend coming under suspicion, losing her dog, suddenly having to carry a gas mask everywhere she goes, and finding out that one of her friends may be sent to the US mainland. Through it all, Nanea is trying to think of things she can do to help out. First she is motivated by wanting to win a contest, but, over time, she learns to help for a more selfless reason. I know the book is abridged, so maybe that explains it, but I found something odd in the book. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor, Nanea is worried about her dad and brother, who weren't there but left to help out. The reader is left wondering if they're okay or not. There's a major scene where she finds out about her brother, but one doesn't find out about her dad except just in passing (p. 62). It would have been a major event in Nanea's life to find out what happened to her dad after all her worrying, so I wondered if this detail was omitted when the book was edited down. There was also an odd point on the bottom of p. 98 where the book briefly went into present tense (likely a typo, but it was confusing). I didn't read Nanea's original books, in part due to being sad about the image-free design (Beforever, which American Girl is now moving away from). So it was wonderful to see images added to her stories. I do wish all the images were paintings, but it's still nice to see that kids will again get to read the books complete with artwork. Artwork adds so much to the stories and really brings history to life.

I’m embarrassed to say that before I read this book, I never really thought about World War II from the viewpoint of the citizens of Hawaii. I always thought in general terms of America as a whole. Nanea is the youngest in a Hawaiian family who is desperate to show that she is growing up. In the midst of her plans with friends to prove their maturity and win a local contest, Pearl Harbor is attacked. Nanea, her family, and her friends must deal with devastation, blackouts, curfews, the arrest of Japanese citizens simply due to their origin, and trying to do their part to support the war effort. Although I thought I knew a decent amount about WWII, rationing, etc., I never realized things like bottles were in demand. There’s so much history in this book, told in a very engaging and heart-touching way. Events are made personal and real by the way they twine through the lives of Naneaand her family. There’s a glossary of Hawaiian words in the back and a brief synopsis about the time in which Nanea lived. This is a great living history story that will teach while entertaining. Highly recommended. Let Amazon donate to your favorite charity! Use Amazon Smile (smile.amazon.com) when you order and Amazon will donate to the charity of your choice when you make a qualifying purchase. Check out how Amazon Smile works at https://smile.amazon.com/gp/chpf/about/ref=smi_se_rspo_laas_aas. My shopping is donating to my favorite charity, Canines for Independence at no cost to me. Awesome!