Moloka'i

Alan Brennert’s Moloka’i, published in 2003, offers a fictional account of the life of Rachel Kalama, a native Hawaiian with Hansen’s disease. A writer for television and film and the author of numerous books, short story collections, and comic books, Brennert has won an Emmy and a People’s Choice Award for L.A. Law and a Nebula Award for “Ma Qui,” a short story. As historical fiction, Moloka’i realistically depicts life for Hawaiians with Hansen’s disease, referred to as leprosy throughout the novel. Brennert employs historical facts detailing the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy, the bombing of Pearl Harbor and World War II, and the existence of the containment facilities at Moloka’i to describe life for Hawaiians with Hansen’s disease as he concentrates on Rachel and how she navigates exile, marriage, and motherhood. Brennert later published Daughter of Moloka’i in 2019, which focuses on Rachel’s daughter, Ruth. Brennert, who visited Moloka’i in the 1990s, has spoken of his love for Hawaii and Harriet Doerr’s historical fiction set in Mexico as partial inspiration for Moloka’i (“Reading Guide,” Moloka’i, 392).

Other work by this author includes the novel, Honolulu.

This guide is based on the 2003 edition, published by St.