KEIKI BOOKS
Illustrations in Duke, fable releases enhance learning

Editor's note: Today we are joined by a new contributor on children's books — writer and illustrator James Rumford. He and Jolie Jean Cotton, who has been reviewing books for keiki, will share the duty. Look for their reviews the first Sunday of each month.

By James Rumford

•	DUKES OLYMPIC FEET, by Ellie Crowe, illustrated by Mark N. Brown; Island Heritage, $14.99; recommended for ages 7-10

Last year must have been Duke Kahanamoku's year: first a post-age stamp to honor the Olympic hero, then a picture book for children that captures the struggle and eventual triumph of one of Hawai'i's most famous athletes.

Author Ellie Crowe tells the story of Duke's meteoric rise to national fame. She starts with his setting a world record in swimming in 1911, tells of his triumph at the Olympic Games of 1912, then adds a story about his teaching Australians to surf in 1914.

From Page One, she captures the excitement of the races he swam and the determination of a man who said that along with his God-given talent came a whip — a whip with which to flog himself into making the most out of his gift.

Crowe divides her tale into chapters. Although this slows the rhythm she has established, it unifies her work, composed of separate but related vignettes of Duke's life.

But the crucial unifying force in this book are the 40 oil paintings done by Mark N. Brown. This is a remarkable achievement for an artist new to illustration — even one whose oil paintings seem to be everywhere, including Atélier 4 on Bishop Street, a gallery of which he is part-owner.

With only a month to finish all 40 paintings, Brown found it in himself (perhaps using the same whip Duke used) to capture the essence of Kahanamoku's life. From page to page, the patches of bright, broken color, the bold brush strokes bring the book to life and suggest a touch of Cézanne, as Brown bends reality to his will. Hands and arms, left intentionally vague, are stretched and exaggerated in the best tradition of telling a story visually.

Just the cover alone, with his glowing portrait of Duke Kahanamoku, will want to make you buy this book. And if you do, go down to Waikiki and take another look at the statue of the man who remains Hawai'i's hero.

•	FABLES FROM THE DEEP,by Leslie Ann Hayashi, Illustrated by Kathleen Wong Bishop; Mutual Publishing, $14.95; recommended for ages 7-11

Such pronouncements don't always make for a comfortable ride, but why should they? Children want to hear what grown-ups have to say about what is right and wrong ... and what better way to do that than through storytelling?

So storyteller Leslie Hayashi, who is a Honolulu judge and no stranger to right and wrong, writes 10 fables, each about an animal or some phenomenon of nature from the dark. From fungi to squids, stars to comets, Hayashi lays the groundwork for her end-of-the-story morals. And, wisely, at the back, she adds information about the habits of the creatures that inhabit her book so that we learn why she chose them.

Remarkable, too, is the telling. In the first fable a wolf spider visits his blind cousin in a cave. Eloquently, Hayashi envelopes us in blackness with well-chosen words. Later, when the seeing spider returns to the world of daylight, we almost feel the stony ground get rockier.

Hayashi's longtime friend Kathleen Bishop has done the illustrations with the charm and friendliness of watercolors, which soften the message Hayashi wants to give.

"Fables from the Deep" may take you on a bumpy ride but it is a necessary one, for there is plenty for you and your keiki to think and talk about. Reading aloud to your children is only half the job. Discussion is the other half.

James Rumford, who lives in Manoa Valley, is a children's book author and illustrator.