The Hawaiiana nonfiction genre is often populated by books on surfing or the monarchy; there is a surprising deficiency of work written on religion.

A sporadic few have been published over the years: compendiums of spiritual places; an intimate focus on religious women in the Pacific; the history of a particular church, missionary, or holy person, with Father Damien the focus of many. Coincidentally, in recent months, a handful of well-written, skillfully designed books were published, featuring everything from Maui missionaries to Presbyterian church minutes.

"Engraved at Lahainaluna" by David W. Forbes (Mission Houses Museum, $75) offers a specialized look at the Lahainaluna Seminary (now Lahainaluna High School) printing press and how the artists and scholars who worked there pioneered the production of engravings and illustrated books. Thousands of copies of nearly 100 different items were printed out of Lahainaluna.

You’d think more photographs would be provided, considering the topic, but the ones included offer a good estimation of the seminary’s extraordinary work dating back to 1833.

The book’s detailed maps and landscape sketches will prove useful to historians, yet I found the anatomy books printed in both English and Hawaiian to be the most fascinating.

"Engraved at Lahainaluna" is a fitting tribute to one of the most significant achievements of Hawaii’s missionaries.

"Edward Bailey of Maui: Teacher & Naturalist, Engineer & Artist" by Linda McCullough Decker (Rainsong, $34.95) seeks to break away from the stereotypical missionary experience in Hawaii by comprehensively depicting the life of Edward Bailey.

A true Renaissance man by any definition, Bailey took on the roles of teacher, surveyor, agriculturist, naturalist, entrepreneur and artist. The pages are decorated with Bailey’s beautiful landscapes along with old photographs, maps, illustrations and letters from Bailey himself.

Decker’s writing seamlessly integrates the words of Bailey and his wife into a story that is both captivating and enlightening, wisely breaking it up with informative interludes that accentuate the narrative.

Through Edward Bailey’s life we find the perfect example of a missionary who came to do good and did well for all.

"Adjourned with a Prayer: The Minutes from Siloama & Kanaana Hou Churches" (Ka ‘Ohana O Kalaupapa, $20) is a collection of meeting notes and minutes from Siloama and Kanaana Hou churches in Kalawao and Kalaupapa on Molokai from 1866 to 1928. Inspired by the discovery of an old ledger book, the minutes were thoughtfully compiled by Ka ‘Ohana O Kalaupapa, a nonprofit organization of residents, descendants and supporters dedicated to preserving the history of Kalaupapa, educating the public about its tragic history and inspiring future generations.

There are a few short history chapters, but most of the book is dedicated to the recorded church meetings. Every meeting starts with a roll call and ends with a prayer. While reading about how church leaders voted to rebuild the roof or their discussion of the price of piano lessons may seem mundane at first, it provides an insightful look at daily life in Kalaupapa and how the work of the church community helped better the living conditions and the well-being of residents. This book is a great primary resource for anyone curious about Kalawao and Kalaupapa.

Misty Lynn Sanico writes for the literary website HawaiiReads.com.