Illustrator: Pamela Johnson
On August 21, 1959, Hawaii became the 50th state of the United States of America. Today, tourists from all over the world bask in the beauty of Hawaii's tropical climate, but many do not know the turbulent history of this tiny island. Hawaii was an independent royal kingdom until Americans forced their way in to make money off the sugar crop. Queen Liliuokalani, the last monarch to sit on the Hawaiian throne, watched her nation slip from power throughout her lifetime. It was a sad day when she stepped off the throne and was arrested in her own palace. There was no way of stopping the Americans from annexing the Hawaiian nation; therefore, she avoided war by peacefully surrendering.This book by John MacGregor gives a realistic view of Queen Liliuokalani's life. She was raised in a life of privilege, and she had every right to become queen of Hawaii. She served as queen from 1891-1893, but this time period was wrought with turbulence. Children will find this book to be very informative in many aspects. It not only details the queen's life, but also the events surrounding her acension to and surrender of the throne. Hawaiian vocabulary words, history, and other tidbits of information are included throughout the book. I really liked that the information was presented in a simple and concise manner. This would be a wonderful text to use as a resource for classroom study.
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