Sea Turtles of Hawai`i

by Patrick Ching

Book Overview

Enter the world of the honu, Hawai'i's beloved green sea turtle. Revered by Hawaiians since ancient times, and playing an important role in their culture, these turtles were reduced to dangerously low numbers by commercial fishing before gaining protection as a threatened species under federal law.

Born and raised in Hawai'i, author Patrick Ching has long admired these turtles that "fly through the sea." As a ranger for the U.S. Fish and...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0824824342
• ISBN13: 9780824824341
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: University of Hawaii Press
• Length: 64 Pages
• Weight: 1.10 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 10.3" x 8.8"

Customer Reviews

A beautiful offering of the magick of Hawaii

Met the author - wonderful man with beautiful island energy. His art is magickal and spiritual. I have many of his art pieces hanging in my home now, as well as have sent plenty to my ohana (family). I was not raised in Hawaii though I am Hawaiian. This book brings love and warmth to my heart, as my heart does belong to my Hawaiian heritage. I highly recommend anything from Patrick Ching. He puts so much of himself in his work. Even as a 45yo woman, I find that Patrick's art/books speak to my child at heart. Aloha nui loa, ~Annette

Beautiful paintings by someone who knows sea turtles

Patrick Ching is many things... a painter, a naturalist, a rodeo clown (really!), a Hawaiian, and an observer of nature to the nth degree. For this book, he put his eye, and talent, into capturing the essence of sea turtles, particularly the Pacific green sea turtle, or honu. Ching's experiences with sea turtles on French Frigate Shoals and the main Hawaiian Islands resonate in his illustrations. An artist who has looked deep into the black eye of the honu created these paintings. The text is factually accurate, in part because of Ching's knowledge, but also because he collaborated with George Balazs, probably the most knowledgeable person regarding the Pacific green sea turtle on this planet (learn more about Balazs in the book Fire in the Turtle House: The Green Sea Turtle and the Fate of the Ocean, by Osha Gray Davidson). Great pictures, factual text, and a neat critter... this book is a winner.