Book overview
An epic adventure steeped in Hawaiian lore, this enchanting novel explores the connection between our world and that of the spirits of the wood, from bestselling author Nikki Van De Car.
"Intensely lush atmospheric descriptions create an immersive and sensory read ... Intersecting topics of nativeness and heritage, self-identification, tourism, environmental justice, folklore, and more are buoyed by a bit of romance, and the sum of all the parts manages to be both starkly realistic and surprisingly hopeful." --Booklist, starred review
According to legend, when the kanaka 'ōiwi sailed over two thousand miles across untraveled seas to the most remote island chain in the world, they encountered another people living there. They were two to three feet tall, squat and strong, good and kind, and bothered no one without cause--they were the Menehune. When the Hawaiians came, the menehune chieftains feared the changes they brought. So, on the night of a full moon, they called all men and their firstborn sons and ordered them to leave Hawai'i. Some refused and, instead, hid behind to remain with their families. In the early 1800s, Kauai chief Kaumaualiʻi took a census of his people--and 65 of his 2,000 subjects were all that remained of the original people of Hawai'i.
Flash forward to today: sixteen-year-old Emma is out running errands when she comes across a boy from Hilo living in the woods, saying things that do not make sense. It's here, in these woods, that Emma has memories of finding a space between "the worlds" as a child. She soon realizes this boy has accessed the place she lost, as well as the people, the Menehune. She helps him hide until whatever spell has been cast over him is broken. Together, Emma and the Hilo boy have to figure out what the Menehune want before it's too late to save the only home any of them have known.
A Bank Street Best Books of the Year (2026)!
A New York Public Library's Best Books of 2025!
A Nautilus Award Silver Winner: YA Fiction
"Intensely lush atmospheric descriptions create an immersive and sensory read ... Intersecting topics of nativeness and heritage, self-identification, tourism, environmental justice, folklore, and more are buoyed by a bit of romance, and the sum of all the parts manages to be both starkly realistic and surprisingly hopeful." --Booklist, starred review
According to legend, when the kanaka 'ōiwi sailed over two thousand miles across untraveled seas to the most remote island chain in the world, they encountered another people living there. They were two to three feet tall, squat and strong, good and kind, and bothered no one without cause--they were the Menehune. When the Hawaiians came, the menehune chieftains feared the changes they brought. So, on the night of a full moon, they called all men and their firstborn sons and ordered them to leave Hawai'i. Some refused and, instead, hid behind to remain with their families. In the early 1800s, Kauai chief Kaumaualiʻi took a census of his people--and 65 of his 2,000 subjects were all that remained of the original people of Hawai'i.
Flash forward to today: sixteen-year-old Emma is out running errands when she comes across a boy from Hilo living in the woods, saying things that do not make sense. It's here, in these woods, that Emma has memories of finding a space between "the worlds" as a child. She soon realizes this boy has accessed the place she lost, as well as the people, the Menehune. She helps him hide until whatever spell has been cast over him is broken. Together, Emma and the Hilo boy have to figure out what the Menehune want before it's too late to save the only home any of them have known.
A Bank Street Best Books of the Year (2026)!
A New York Public Library's Best Books of 2025!
A Nautilus Award Silver Winner: YA Fiction
