Even in a season of relative discontent, the Hawaii women’s volleyball team is winning more than 75 percent of its matches. It’s a rebuilding year, and headed into the final weekend of the Big West schedule the Rainbow Wahine have crept back into the top 25 of the coaches poll, after spending much of 2014 unranked.

But unloved? Never.

This is coach Dave Shoji’s 40th season, and even though the program he has led to four national championships is far from its peak, he is as popular as ever.

Sure, a few grumble, claiming that the game has passed him by. But that irrational complaint is nothing new. And anyone needing an explanation of why UH hasn’t won it all since 1987 only needs to read Shoji’s recently released memoir, "Wahine Volleyball: 40 Years Coaching Hawaii’s Team."

They can even have him — and collaborator Ann Miller — sign the book after Friday’s match against UC Riverside or Saturday’s regular-season ender against UC Davis.

Shoji and Miller have felt the aloha in full force since the book’s release earlier this month.

"There have actually been lines to have the book signed," Shoji said. "Of course, we didn’t know what to expect so I think the publishers are happy. The timing seems to be right, cheap Christmas gifts."

Miller covered the Wahine for more than 30 years for the Honolulu Advertiser and the Star-Advertiser before retiring earlier this year.

"Neither of us had a clue how this works but the hard cover sold out and the book signings have been much more fun than two pretty shy people expected," she said.

I enjoyed reading the book, and am certain all UH volleyball fans will. 

It is by no means a tell-all, but it tells enough to be of value even to readers who are merely interested in a portrait of consistent success, the dynamics that helped the Rainbow Wahine build their huge fan base and win championships, and the factors that caused them to peak.

"Why was that the last championship (in 1987)?" Shoji then answers his own question, "The rest of the world caught up to us." And then he explains how that happened.

No excuses, just reasons.

In one of the book’s juiciest tidbits, Shoji names his all-time top six players.

A particularly revealing chapter is about what happens on the road, including a priceless story about nearly losing a player in Mexico and another about who rides with whom and why.

His recollections — along with those of Miller and his most prominent players and assistant coaches — and the statistics and records make it an important work in the context of Hawaii sports history.

The work seesaws from a sentimental look back on a mostly successful career and matter-of-fact analysis of what went right and what didn’t. 

It is in tune with the dichotomy of the fans’ unabashed, unconditional love for the Wahine and their coach, coupled with their long unfulfilled hunger for another national championship.

"There is a bond, from the players to the fans and beyond," Shoji writes.

That one sentence is the essence of the story, and the rest of the book backs it up well.

Reach Dave Reardon at dreardon@staradvertiser.com or 529-4783. His blog is at hawaiiwarriorworld.com/quick-reads.