Moloka'i. Today, Moloka'i is refered to as "the friendly island" of Hawaii. However, it was not always so. From 1866 to 1969, Moloka'i was the host of Kalaupapa, a leper settlement. When leprosy was prevalent in the country, people were forced to come to this settlement to live out their days with no hope of ever going home or seeing their families again. 'Moloka'i' by Alan Brennert tells the story of a young woman, Rachel Kalama. She is diagnosed with leprosy and forced by her family to relocate to the leper colony on Moloka'i. Against everything everyone tells her, she continues to survive and helps to build the leper colony up, and to try and lead as normal a life as possible given her circumstances. It is a very moving book as you follow the character from such a young age and continue to learn her story as the years pass and happy and heartbreaking events occur that change the lives of others.
This is another book I picked up because of the artwork on the cover and it's one I recommend to those looking for a different and moving story. It not only shows you a side of history you might not have ever known about, but it shows the lives that people in leper colonies went through, and it sheds a light on their feelings about having been abandoned by nearly everyone. If you want to give this book a shot, the link is below. It's an expensive e-book at $9.99, but you can get a used book (just as good, and they make up almost my whole personal library) for under $5 with shipping.
This is another book I picked up because of the artwork on the cover and it's one I recommend to those looking for a different and moving story. It not only shows you a side of history you might not have ever known about, but it shows the lives that people in leper colonies went through, and it sheds a light on their feelings about having been abandoned by nearly everyone. If you want to give this book a shot, the link is below. It's an expensive e-book at $9.99, but you can get a used book (just as good, and they make up almost my whole personal library) for under $5 with shipping.