Unfamiliar Fishes

By: Sarah Vowell

Narrated by: Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, John Hodgman, Catherine Keener, Edward Norton, Keanu Reeves, Paul Rudd, Maya Rudolph, John Slattery, Sarah Vowell

Length: 7 hrs and 28 mins

Publisher's summary

Many think of 1776 as the most defining year of American history, the year we became a nation devoted to the pursuit of happiness through self-government. In Unfamiliar Fishes, Sarah Vowell argues that 1898 might be a year just as crucial to our nation's identity, a year when, in an orgy of imperialism, the United States annexed Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and Guam, and invaded Cuba and then the Philippines, becoming a meddling, self-serving, militaristic international superpower practically overnight.

Of all the countries the United States invaded or colonized in 1898, Vowell considers the story of the Americanization of Hawaii to be the most intriguing. From the arrival of the New England missionaries in 1820, who came to Christianize the local heathen, to the coup d'état led by the missionaries' sons in 1893, overthrowing the Hawaiian queen, the events leading up to American annexation feature a cast of beguiling, if often appalling or tragic, characters. Whalers who will fire cannons at the Bible-thumpers denying them their god-given right to whores. An incestuous princess pulled between her new god and her brother-husband. Sugar barons, con men, Theodore Roosevelt, and the last Hawaiian queen, a songwriter whose sentimental ode "Aloha 'Oe" serenaded the first Hawaii-born president of the United States during his 2009 inaugural parade.

With Vowell's trademark wry insights and reporting, she sets out to discover the odd, emblematic, and exceptional history of the 50th state. In examining the place where Manifest Destiny got a sunburn, she finds America again, warts and all.

Read by the author a cast that includes Fred Armisen, Bill Hader, John Hodgman, Catherine Keener, Edward Norton, Keanu Reeves, Paul Rudd, Maya Rudolph, and John Slattery. Music by Michael Giacchino with Grant Lee-Phillips. The score contains excerpts from "Hawai'i Pono'i" (words by David Kalakaua and music by Henri Berger) performed by Grant-Lee Phillips.

©2011 Sarah Vowell (P)2011 Simon and Schuster

Critic reviews

"Vowell makes an excellent travelling companion, what with her rare combination of erudition and cheek." ( The New York Times Book Review)

One of my favorite narrators and historians

Sarah Vowell is a unique historian. She may be the only historian known as much for her unique speaking voice as she is for her writing. She has been a regular on This American Life, the voice of the daughter on the movie The Increadibles and is the author of six books.

So it is her voice (both actually and literary) that will lead you to love or hate her. To get an idea of her actual voice you can watch the book trailer below. But that will really only matter if you want to listen to the audiobook (which I did.)

The literary voice is another matter. Vowell is a historian for the ADD world. She is thorough, but the book is littered with bunny trails. She writes as much about the process and people she meets while doing research as she does about the topic. So we will hear about the guides on tours and people she meets in libraries. Her nephew Owen pops up frequently in her books because she seems to frequently travel with her sister and nephew. These comments bring a grounding to her work and let the reader really understand her as an author. But if you are more interested in the actual subject than the author, you might not like Sarah Vowell’s books.

In some ways, Unfamiliar Fishes is a sequel her last book. Wordy Shipmates explored the founding of New England and the Pilgrims. Unfamiliar Fishes looks at Hawaii, from its early history to its introduction to the US as a territory. (I actually would have liked to know more about how it became a state.) Much of the colonizing effort in Hawaii was the result of American Missionaries from New England, the children and grandchildren of the subjects of Wordy Shipmates. Vowell has a unique relationship to American Christianity. She is the grandchild of a pastor and while not a practicing Christian, she is fluent in and has great respect for the motivation of Christian and these New Englanders’ in particular. That does not mean she really agrees with them as she will tell you frequently.

Lots of information so you have to pay attention

I had a little trouble following the people about whom the author was speaking. I could have used a PDF or print book to follow along, but that's my shortcoming, not the author. I'm sure I'll listen to it again to catch things I missed. It's a pretty thorough, but concise, history of Hawaii.

I'm glad Sarah Vowell doesn't sugarcoat things. You get some gory details that you probably wouldn't get in a history class. Things that I had little trouble following were the culture clashes. (There have always been and probably always will be people who feel they've cornered the market on how everyone should behave, and they're going to see that everyone does!)

An honest examination of Hawaiian history

Sarah Vowell is such an engaging, honest historian. I've never been to Hawaii but now when I go I'll see the islands with a more true perspective.
Thank you Sarah.

dive into Hawaiian history with Vowell

my favorite tourist of history does it again, with another great voice cast helping her out.

Excellent

Loved it! I'd even pay for it with real money. Great author and excellent narration!!!!

As an Islander, I approve!

What do you think the narrator could have done better?

I would have liked the author to have worked with a native speaker to iron out her horrific pronunciation of the Native Hawai'ian words but, otherwise, I think that Ms. Vowell did a nice job.

Awesome

I really liked this - lost a few hours sleep last night because I could not stop listening.

Learned a lot, laughed some - but cried a bit too for the damage that was done to people who deserved better - who would have been better off in many ways had they not been so willing to accept missionaries and settlers.

My only quibble is with the presentation - the use of other voices for quotes just didn't work for me - I understand why the author did it - but it took away rather than added to my enjoyment

Highly recommend if you like to be entertained and learn from your books

Dont listen to the critics

Sarah Vowell hits the mark with this audiobook that blends history with personal reaction and historigraphy. I have enjoyed all of her books and this one is great too. . . it isnt the masterpiece Assasination Vacation was, and this audiobook is not as entertaining as that one was, but it is also more colorful and less wordy than the Wordy Shipmates. For those who sneer at the narration, half the joy of these books is listening to Vowell's dry wit and human vocality. She is not pronouncing things incorrectly, and her expression adds to the whole audiobook experience. These people would probably dislike Angela's Ashes because "they should have got a narrator without such a thick Irish accent." Sarah Vowell's naration is wonderful.

'Unfamiliar Fishes' and Professor Vowell?

Would Unfamiliar Fishes be assigned to read in a history course?

Would Sarah Vowell by hired as a history professor?

Probably no on both counts, and that makes me a little sad.

Sarah Vowell writes great history books. Unfamiliar Fishes traces the long-term results for the Hawaiian people, and monarchy, of the decision of a few New England evangelists to move to the archipelago in the early 19th century. The end results, including the loss of sovereignty and the eventual annexation by the U.S. may be predictable - but few of us (certainly not myself), know the details of the story. Sarah Vowell, as always, is the perfect person to teach us some history.

Don't get me wrong. Sarah Vowell doesn't really need academia. She is doing just fine on her own. But we need Sarah Vowell, or at least more people like her. Scholars who perhaps do not take themselves so seriously, but can still manage to draw on primary sources to tell new stories.

I imagine Sarah Vowell's lack of terminal credentials, in addition to the first person narrative and frequent insertions of hilarious personal details into her historical narratives, would somewhat disqualify her from the professional historian club.
Our loss.

Any other Sarah Vowell fans out there?

Rough history of Hawaii.

If you have ever been to Hawaii it is easy to forget that beautiful places can have very ugly histories. Thank you Sarah Vowell for this amazing insight into the history of inconveniently strategically placed islands in the pacific.