Hawai'i Fiction, Songs and Drama

(93k)

Keiki by Jan Tissot. ISBN 0971782504. Published by Parhelion Publishing. Recommended retail price $14.

Stockmans Inc. is tearing down old Maunaloa town on the island of Molokai to clear the land for subdivision. Seattle law student, Milissa “Keiki” Dogherty, interning for island attorney, Morgan Zarins, allies herself with sovereignty activists and plantation workers bent on preserving their homes and traditions. National media comes to town on the heels of ex-President Jimmy Carter, there to assess the impact the town’s demise will have on its children. As tensions between town and corporation build, the true nature of Hawaii – its poverty, racial strife, and homespun pride – is revealed, and a mystery ensues that inspires compassion for victim and villain alike.

Jan Tissot is a Juris Doctor, graduate of Seattle University Law School, with thirty years experience as a criminal defense investigator (Seattle) and west coast political activist. Over the past forty years he has published four books of poetry, distributed primarily in the Seattle, Tacoma and San Francisco areas. He lived in Hawaii for seven years during the writing of his novel, Keiki. Jan Tissot, J.D., is a child of the old days in America. Born in 1940 – before the nation’s corporate coup and its attendant shopping malls, suburbs, TV sets, plastic substitutes, super highways, and paid-for politicians – he survived the transformation as a rebel, fighting a state/corporate synergy that he believes is bent on casting us as background extras in its virtual democracy.

“Real and exciting… Keiki would make a very good film. The locations, characters, and story are all compelling.”
Paul Sylbert, Author of Final Cut, Screenwriter,
Director, Oscar Winning Production Designer

“A carefully constructed political drama and love story… reveals the complex history of a vibrant Hawaiian community struggling for rebirth and justice… suspenseful, surprising, and ultimately heartening.”
Erin Guest, Seattle Arts & Lectures

“There is a lot to like in this new offering from Tissot. The politics at work revolve around a company, Stockmans Inc., tearing down the town of Maunaloa on the island of Molokai to clear the land for subdivision. Ex-President Jimmy Carter – treated with all the grace and respect that he deserves – makes a fabulous cameo appearance.”
Matthew Weaver, WSU’s Daily Evergreen

“Tissot has written a lovely and often penetrating book… a richly detailed story of Hawaiian life, filled with attractive characters coming up against mega-financial interests… addressing his riveting subject with energy, clarity, and a charming storytelling manner.”
Jay Bail, San Francisco’s Book Reader

Soft cover, 368 pages. Published in 2003.

Last modified on Saturday, January 17, 2004