Light in the Crevice Never Seen [Hardcover]

Haunani-Kay Trask (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0934971382 | ISBN-13: 978-0934971386 | Publication Date: January 1, 1999 | Edition: 1

Poetry. In an expanded edition of the first book of poetry by an indigenous Hawaiian to be published in North America, Haunani-Kay Trask describes the wounded beauty and the fiery origins of her native land. Through Trask's eyes we see a Hawai'I of living contradictions. Strange unscented trees from Asia, ill-clothed people, and miles of wire coexist alongside new-born stone, little sparkling fish, and long spears of moonlight. [Trask] carries us on a path that begins with the violence of dispossession and stolen lives, and takes us through that plundered world into a present where the women gods rise up, strong and resilient, where life is defende 'with a spear of memory' -- Linda Hogan.

Editorial Reviews

From Library Journal

Like the volcanoes on her beloved native islands, many of the poems in Trask's first collection spew fire. The writer, an ardent feminist and a leader in the Hawaiian sovereignty movement, often tackles an immensely difficult poetic genre, the political poem. As the titles illustrate, many of these poems record the pain and displacement of a colonized people. As in most first collections, the poems are uneven. Trask succeeds best when she combines imagery ("green chatter-chatter of coconut leaves"), her deep feeling for the land, and bilingual phrases (in Hawaiian and English). Trask includes some detailed descriptive notes, a pronunciation key, and a six-page glossary, which help the reader to understand many of the references and also serve as a brief introduction to the centuries-old Hawaiian culture. These poems enable us to "hear all around us/seeping through the mud/a constant, inconsolable/ grief/long after moonrise." Recommended for large and Native American poetry collections.
Doris Lynch, Bloomington P.L., Ind.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Booklist

It is stunning to read that this is the first publication of a book of poems by a Native Hawaiian. For mainlanders unaware of the racial issues in that apparent island paradise, Trask's work is an eye-opener. In heavily cadenced, musical language, Trask explores the social realities affecting Native Hawaiians today, from youthful suicide to loss of language, from verbal racism to physical violence. But there is also in her work a deep connection to the islands' beautiful, ocean-ringed land and to the sustaining strengths of family and of love. Fierce words from a woman known for her dedication to her people. Pat Monaghan

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 106 pages
• Publisher: Calyx Books; 1 edition (January 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0934971382
• ISBN-13: 978-0934971386
• Product Dimensions: 9.5 x 6.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,637,348 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Open-minded critique of the truth no one wants to admit, February 8, 2006

By 

Antoinette Tenhunen "AMT" (Helsinki, Finland E.U.) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light in the Crevice Never Seen, Revised Edition (Hardcover)

Ms. Trask's writing is a strong reflection of the struggle and pain indigenous people from all over the world suffer, endure and live through. It is a pity that because of her strong rhetoric and cutting direct assessments, some refuse to acknowledge the importance, influence and role her work has expressed and manifested. I reccommend this book as a wake-up call to those who do not fear the truth.

16 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Racist!, June 7, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Light In The Crevice Never Seen (Old Edition) (Paperback)

How can anyone condone this racist, hateful so-called "poetry"?

From the poem "Racist White Women"

I could kick your face
Puncture both your eyes
You deserve this kind of violence
***
Just a knife slitting your tight
Little heart
***
A fist in your painted
Mouth
***
A sworn Black promise
To shadow your footsteps
Until the hearse of violence
Comes to get you.

3 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Awesome, April 2, 2004

By 

Anu (Pukalani, HI United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Light in the Crevice Never Seen, Revised Edition (Paperback)

This book of poetry was such an intense cry of awareness to all Hawaiians, and somewhat of a call to arms for all indigenous peoples across the world. Do something, is pretty much waht she's trying to say. Haunani Kay is a beautiful poet, and every poem, whether you are Hawaiian or not, is surely to appreciate. I wrote an essay for English 104 on her poem "Refusal" and I got an A...by the way! :)