What are you reading?

I just started "The Story of Lana'i" by George C. Munro, based on the notes he made and kept. ... It's a wonderful story written firsthand about an island that I think not too many people know much about. I'm also reading a kind of an exercise book called "Old Friend From Far Away" by Natalie Goldberg. It's practice for writing a memoir. I've been doing her little exercises, and hopefully, one of these days, I'll at least get down enough family memories to write a memoir. And my travel book is "The Innocent Man" by John Grisham, a light read that fits in my purse.

What do you like most about them?

I love the fact that it's written in George Munro's own words, and his great love of the land and the people that comes through. This is written during the days when Lana'i was a cattle ranch, and there are just wonderful old pictures of the people and an interesting foreword. ... And Goldberg's book — it just kind of jump-started me. I didn't have to do a lot of pondering — she gives you an assignment, and they are very easy to do. And by golly, at the end of your 10 minutes, you've got something written down and it's fun.

Do Munro's and Goldberg's books especially interest you because they keep the past alive and relevant, as you do helping 'Iolani Palace play a role in our lives today?

Yes. Because I really have spent a good part of my life poking into the past, and so many things that have happened are so wonderful we don't want to let them disappear from our memories.