Novel prize eludes former isle resident
Alan Averill of Seattle was named Amazon Breakthrough Novel Award winner in the general fiction category for his novel, "The Beautiful Land."
Former Hawaii resident Brian Reeves was one of six finalists for the award for his novel "A Chant of Love and Lamentation," which is about a radical wing of the Hawaiian sovereignty movement that blows up a hotel in Waikiki.
Reeves, who lives in Portland, Ore., studied at the University of Hawaii in 1994 and taught writing at Chaminade University in 2007 and 2008. His novel is available at amazon.com ($15; for Kindle, $9.99).
The contest was sponsored by Amazon.com, Penguin Group (USA) and CreateSpace.
"The Beautiful Land" is the story of two people "in love from the moment they met but destined to be apart forever. Thanks to a time machine and a mysterious invention buried deep in the Australian Outback, they now have one more chance to get it right."
Regina Sirois won in the young adult fiction group for "On Little Wings." Both Sirois and Averill received a publishing contract from Penguin Group (USA) that includes a $15,000 advance.
Inner-city musicians to perform on Oahu
The award-winning Great Wall Youth Orchestra of Laney College in Oakland, Calif., is traveling to Oahu for two performances next week.
The unique orchestra, whose members are inner-city youths from age 10 to 18, uses traditional Chinese instruments to play music from around the world. The group performs at 3 p.m. Sunday at Ala Moana Center’s Centerstage and 6 p.m. Monday at the Polynesian Cultural Center.
See a video clip of the orchestra at goo.gl/iWOBB.
The Great Wall Youth Orchestra is a grant recipient of the Thomas J. Long Foundation, a family foundation started by the co-founder of Longs Drugs.
Visit www.purplesilk.org.
Book club will meet for first time Sunday
"Parable of the Sower" by Octavia Butler will be the first work up for discussion at Revolution Books’ new Fiction Book Club, whose first meeting is at 1 p.m. Sunday.
The group, which will meet on the fourth Sunday of each month, will examine "great novels" that "shine a light on the way the world really is, and why, and maybe make us ponder a different way the world could be," according to a news release.
Meetings will be held at the bookstore, 2626 S. King St. Free parking is available in front of the store. Call 944-3106 or visit www.revolutionbookshonolulu.org.
