This was really nice. The stories were so simple and so nostalgic; the back describes them as stories you would hear from your elders, the ones that are passed down and told at the table. I liked the concentration on Muliwai Lane, the different stories that happened within such a small geographic area, and that the demise of the land was also included. Great lil read. I found that the stories only got stronger as it progressed, which is why it's rated as it is. I also would have loved to read this while I was actually in Honolulu... but alas.