The Descendants

By: Kaui Hart Hemmings

Narrated by: Jonathan Davis

Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins

Publisher's summary

Now a major motion picture starring George Clooney!

Matthew King was once considered one of the most fortunate men in Hawaii. His missionary ancestors who came to the islands were financially and culturally progressive - one even married a Hawaiian princess, making Matt a royal descendant and one of the state’s largest landowners. But now his luck has changed. His two daughters are out of control - 10-year-old Scottie has a smart-ass attitude and a desperate need for attention and 17-year-old Alex, a former model, is a recovering drug addict. His thrill-seeking and high-maintenance wife, Joanie, lies in a coma after a boat racing accident, and will soon be taken off life support.

The King family can hardly picture life without their charismatic mother, but as they come to terms with this tragedy, their sadness is mixed with a sense of freedom that shames them - and spurs them into surprising actions.

©2007 Kaui Hart Hemmings. All rights reserved. (P)2010 BBC America Audiobooks

Critic reviews

"Matt's journey with his girls forms the emotional core of this sharply observed, frequently hilarious and intermittently heartbreaking look at a well-meaning but confused father trying to hold together his unconventional family." ( Publishers Weekly)

"[An] audaciously comic début novel.... Hemmings channels the voice of her befuddled middle-aged hero with virtuosity, as he teeters between acerbic and sentimental, scoffing at himself even as he grasps for redemption." ( The New Yorker)

I loved it!

I really enjoyed this book. The fact that I live in Hawaii probably played a role in why it was so fascinating to me. I haven't seen the movie yet but now it is definitely on my to-watch list. But back to the book...I thought the characters were well developed and likable. The emotions and scenarios described throughout the story were very real and at times I laughed and teared up. While there were a few jarring mispronounciations of Hawaiian words, in general the narrator handled the words a lot better than I expected him to (based on some of the reviews I read before listening). Overall, despite those few mispronounciations, I thought the narrator did a fantastic job. He was the perfect choice for Mr. King! I definitely recommend this book.

Story limited by the viewpoint

I am surprised I did find much to like about this book because I generally dislike stories told in the first person present viewpoint. The limitations of this viewpoint, especially the difficulty of sustaining it over a long story, do catch up with the author. It was hard to feel connected to a story when you really couldn't "see" it. Setting and description are limited. Matt, the viewpoint character, felt flat and shallow. And not too bright for an attorney. I did love the secondary characters, especially daughters and Sid. The narrator was good.

An enjoyable read

Would you listen to The Descendants again? Why?

No once was enough for this one.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Descendants?

The confrontation with the "other man".

What does Jonathan Davis bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Great listen.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

waiting for my wife to die

Narrator didn't do homework; New story

Interesting story and one that I have never heard before. But I had two complaints:
1) Unfortunately, the narrator did not do his homework. His pronunciation of words commonly used in Hawai'i was poor. He should have done his homework and asked people who say Hawaiian words and local words how to pronounce them. Really, there's no excuse -- I can't believe he mispronounced poke (POH-keh) to name one of many mistakes.
2) My personal preference would have been for the story to reflect Hawai'i more. This is my bias and not a fault of the book/author. I wanted more Hawai'i and culture of Hawaiians and the local people who live in Hawai'i. There wasn't enough for me.

Maika'i loa

If you could sum up The Descendants in three words, what would they be?

Brave, honest, and provocative.

What did you like best about this story?

As someone who still has much to learn about Hawai'i, its people, and its history, even I tire at the endless cliches and myths that generally get recycled in books, television programs, and films. Ms. Hemmings' book conveys a part of Hawai'i culture that is rarely portrayed and is perhaps a bit uncomfortable to read. Oddly enough, although the circumstances presented may be unique to Hawai'i, the internal struggles of the characters are likely far more universal.

What about Jonathan Davis’s performance did you like?

I think Mr. Davis did an outstanding job with some amazing material. My one wish, however, is that the producers had provided some guidance on the pronunciation of the Hawaiian and pidgin words in the text.

If you could rename The Descendants, what would you call it?

Actually, the title was quite perfect.

Too much time inside Matt King’s head

I didn’t have particular expectations for the book, as I had not seen the movie, though I was aware of it. I was more than a little disappointed in it, and by about halfway though I found myself just wanting to get to the end of it, already.

Most of the book consists of the main character’s reflections, emotions, memories, etc., and I’m afraid he got very tiresome. He often responded to situations in ways that made little sense to me (e.g., his rudeness to the wife of the man who had cuckolded him). His dependence on his children, especially his older daughter, was disturbing. His passivity, occasionally punctuated by unpredictable outbursts of what seemed to me to be irrational anger, was inexplicable. There’s a whole lot of angst there, and not much enlightenment.

The narrator was very good. There were times when he chose to place emphasis in a sentence where I would not have, but it was not especially annoying. He made the voices of the male characters very distinctive, and he didn’t try to use a falsetto for the females.

Loved it

Heartbreaking and heartwarming.
I’d seen the movie a couple times- the book is better. My favorite character Sid is developed much more fully in the book

I love it so so much

narrator is amazing story is amazing I've read it 3 times. correction I have listened to it 3 times. I recommend it to every single person ever.

A book about love, but not romance.

I was looking for a book set in Hawaii, and that was available on audio and came across this one. I saw the movie a couple years ago and found it moving and real with characters I cared about so I quickly picked this one up. I am glad that I did because the book is really good.

The Descendants is written by a female author and has a smart, compassionate and convincing male narrator. It is a bittersweet story about a father who is facing the death of his wife who lies in a coma after a car accident. He has two daughters and his relationship with them has been a bit remote. He is working to say his goodbyes to the wife he loved and establish a loving, caring relationship with their girls. The voice is smart and fresh. His anger, grief and confusion are set from the first words of the book:

The sun is shining, mynah birds are chattering, palm trees are swaying, so what.

That 'so what' is everything. From those words I knew that this man was struggling.

We quickly learn that this man has even more to deal with, when he learns that his wife has been having an affair. He must remove her from life support and decides that she would want her lover to say his goodbyes. So he goes on a mission to find this man that took a piece of his wife's heart. The hunt for this man brings him closer to his daughters, and treats the readers to moving emotions, smart dialogue and a lush backdrop of Hawaii. I enjoyed the glimpses into Hawaii's history and am even more interested to read more.

Weird, but good in the end.

The details leads you to think it is about some property and all the family. BUT it is really about a man who has 2 daughters and his wife has been in an accident. There is a smaller character who is like a fly in the ointment to the man.. The end brought it all back full circle. I would tell some one else about this book, with a little disclaimer about it. It does have the property coursing through it.