Hawaii by James Michener

Hawaii, by James A. Michener, is a novel which covers, on both a
fictional and a non-fictional level, the total history of Hawaii from its
beginning until approximately 1954. The work traces Hawaiian history from
the geological creation of the islands ("From the Boundless Deeps) to the
arrival of its first inhabitants, ("From the Sun-Swept Lagoon"), then to
the settlement of the islands by the American missionaries, ("From the Farm
of Bitterness"). In the novel, as the island's agricultural treasures in
pineapple and sugar cane were discovered, the Chinese were brought as
plantation workers to Hawaii ("From The Starving Village"). Years later,
when it was realized by the island plantation owners that the Japanese were
more dedicated workers, and did not feel the need to own their own lands as
the Chinese did, they too were shipped in vast amounts to Hawaii, ("From
The Inland Sea"). The final chapter deals with what Michener refers to as
"The Golden Men": Those who liv...