Kahalaopuna, or Kahala for short, was the daughter of the wind and the rain of Manoa Valley. She was also known as the Rainbow Maiden for the rainbows that so often seemed to surround her. Kahala was promised to Kauhi, a chief's son, but he was very possessive and jealous, and when he thought he had been betrayed, Kauhi beat the trusting Kahala to death. Her guardian spirit, Pueo the owl, brought her back to life again and again, until the kind Mahana rescued her one last time.

In the end, Mahana knew that the spirit of Kahala could always be found at the end of the rainbow.

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When we were kids, we had the whole series of these Island Heritage books. A lot of them are still on my shelf, but I think maybe some of them should go looking for new readers.

When I re-read this one, I found the relationship between Kahala and Kauhi very disturbing..but that's not the fault of the authors. As far as I can tell, that part of the story is a fairly accurate retelling of the legend. Eww.

I notice that the acknowledgements mention Frances Kakugawa, the author of Kapoho.

Links of interest:

* Hawaii Domestic Violence Action Center
* The story of Kahalaopuna
* Hawaiians and the afterlife

Obviously a book about Kahala should be released in Kahala...but books released at Kahala Mall go straight to security so that's no fun. Decided to leave this book at the park next to Kahala Elementary School instead: it's called Kahala Community Park. It was a bit rainy, which made for a possibility of rainbows, but not terrific for an outdoor release, so I left the book on the long bench outside the building (under the roof): I used go to afterschool Parks & Rec programs here when I was going to school next door.

This is Team Battleship's Turn 12 release for Vekiki's 2012 Monopoly game: Rainbow's End.

Also released for Secretariat's 2012 Never Judge a Book By Its Cover Challenge: week 36 = birds on the cover or in the title.

(Larger photo here.)

This book was set free to find a new reader; I'm so glad you've found it!

This is now your book and you may do whatever you like with it, but I'm hoping you will read and enjoy it. You're welcome to keep it for as long as you wish, and you can even mark it for your "permanent collection" if you'd like...but you don't have to.

In fact, there are no requirements: it's really a free book - no strings. On the other hand, if you do make a journal entry to let the book's previous readers know that it's safely in your hands (anonymously if you wish), that would be super. :D

If you're new to BookCrossing, I hope you will take some time to explore this wonderful free and anonymous community of book lovers and learn about what it has to offer. If you decide to sign up, you may use me (hyphen8) as your referring member if you like.

When you're done with the book, please do feel free to make a journal entry saying what you thought of it or what you plan to do with it next. If you decide to pass it this book to another reader or leave it for someone else to find, joining BookCrossing will allow you to follow the book's future travels whenever another reader makes a journal entry...who knows where it will turn up next?

BookCrossing: making the whole world a library!