America Celebrates 50th Anniversary of Hawaii's Statehood

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. July 16, 2009

HAWAII, July 16, 2009 - Hawaiian history is in the spotlight this year, and not just because Obama grew up in the tourist state. 2009 marks the 50th anniversary of Hawaii's statehood, as well as the release of the upcoming film, "Princess Ka'iulani," depicting the overthrow of the Hawaiian monarchy. But the whole story of Hawaii's history hasn't been told - until now.

Inspired by true events suppressed for nearly 100 years, The Last Aloha (ISBN: 978-1935448006, Lost Coast Press, May 2009), a historical novel set in the 19th Century, paints a vivid picture of the final days of the Hawaiian monarchy - when the last Queen tragically struggled against American missionary descendents to save her throne. Author Gaellen Quinn illustrates the true, official Hawaiian history, unlike James Michener's 1959 classic, Hawaii, which skips over the monarchy period completely.

Inspired to tell the history that Michener could not because of concealed information, Quinn was directed to historical books by her Hawaiian sister-in-law. She extensively researched 19th and 20th Century Hawaiian original documents, photos, and archives. She also visited historical sites and spoke to native Hawaiians.

In 2008, The Last Aloha was a Texas manuscript winner in historical fiction in the Texas Writers' League contest and was a semi-finalist in the Amazon.com/Penguin Books Novel Contest.

Quinn is a consultant for social economic development projects and reaches out to far-flung countries such as Brazil, Cambodia, India, Tanzania, Honduras, Panama and Haiti through her work with the Mona Foundation. She lives in Molokai.

For more information, please visit www.gaellenquinn.com.

To schedule an interview with Gaellen Quinn, please contact:

Babs Chandrasoma at [email protected] | 512.289.4339