Kaui Hart HemmingsReseñas

Parents who try to push their children into the "right" choices are usually coming from a place of love, wanting them to be safe and happy, and sometimes live the lives that the parents would have wanted for themselves. But children have a way of turning into their own people. In Kaui Hart Hemming's The Possibilities, reporter Sarah St. John is struggling with the recent loss of her son, Cully. In his early 20s, he'd recently moved back in with his mom in their hometown of Breckinridge when he was caught in an avalanche while out on the slopes and killed. A few months after his death, as Sarah is trying to figure out how to start living in, she finds herself confronting the reality that she might not have known him as well as she thought.

First, she and her best friend, Suzanne, find evidence that Cully was selling pot when they're cleaning out his room. But more importantly, a young woman called Kit turns up on Sarah's doorstep out of nowhere. She's pretending to be making some extra cash shoveling snow, but it turns out she was the girl Cully was seeing when he died. And she's pregnant. As his family (Sarah, her father Jack, and Sarah's ex/Cully's father, Billy) prepares for a final celebration of his life, Kit's pregnancy and uncertainty about what to do about it stirs up powerful emotions.

Hemmings clearly has an area of interest in her writing: much like the Kings in The Descendants, the St. Johns in The Possibilities are a family coping with the loss of a loved one in a setting of intense natural loveliness. Each family has a quirky member who serves as empathetic comic relief (foul-mouthed child Scottie in Descendants, here QVC-addicted Jack), and each family deals with an outsider connected to the loved one as they grieve. Ordinarily I wouldn't think it quite fair to compare two of an author's works quite so closely, but the parallels between these books are so strong that it doesn't seem avoidable to do so. Hemmings is far from the only author who writes books that feel like variations on a theme (Jane Austen, for example, wrote wonderful books that mostly aren't actually all that different from each other, plot-wise), but for these two to directly follow each other makes the feeling that this is a bit of a retread even stronger.

And to be honest, of the two, this one is worse. A lot of the elements feel a little half-baked, like Sarah and Suzanne's friendship, and the tension between Suzanne's desire for sympathy for going through a divorce and Sarah's continuing grief. And while the decision Kit wrestles with about her pregnancy is obviously supposed to be the source of great dramatic tension, I never really felt a great deal of suspense about how it would play out. The book does have highlights: Hemmings writes lovely, poignant prose, and for the most part she builds compelling characters and lets them shine. This is a perfectly pleasant book, and if I hadn't read and loved The Descendants before I picked it up, I would probably have liked it more. But it suffered for the inevitable comparison, and I'd recommend the other much more heartily.

Told in the first person by the husband of the dying woman, there is a lot of superficial introspection that leads nowhere. Perhaps that is the point. I found it frustrating and dull.

For example, an old cousin tells how he helped soldiers during the war. Matt's thought: "He tells me about the soldiers as though it's the first time he has ever told me, and it makes me sad and uncomfortable and a little angry." Ok. Why? What about it? Where does this go? Nowhere.

This is about one man's confusion about dealing with people and emotion.

Hawai'i and its history play no real role. It could have been set anywhere.

This is a collection of short stories by Hawaiian author Kaui Hart Hemmings. The stories often feature families and their tensions and issues, particularly between adolescents and their parents. They are well written, hard-hitting, somewhat angsty tales of struggles, sadness and dysfunction.

Although the book is set in Hawaii it seems to be a fairly white, upper class version of Hawaii. There are some references to the setting, culture, and ethnic tensions but largely it felt as if the stories could have been set anywhere. Several of the stories have a somewhat incesty feel to them. Overall it was well written and I would read another of her books.

The Descendants of one of my all time favorite books. Since reading it, I've been waiting for another book from Kaui Hart Hemmings. The Possibilities is a fantastic book but it never seen to reach the point of greatness as The Descendants does. A solid 4star book with an interesting story.

If you loved The Descendants then you will like The Possibilities, but don't expect a master piece.

Well, I quite enjoyed this book. No, that's not quite right, I liked the characters and the setting but the story just seemed a bit pointless to me. Sarah, the main character did change by the end but I don't believe that she needed the contents of the 274 odd pages to get there.

Wonderful! And almost EXACTLY like the movie.

This is not an easy read and yet it is an incredibly rewarding read. The book's premise is deep and dark and yet there is light that emerges. The author does an amazing job with the characters, setting, issues, pace--you name it. I actually saw the movie based on the book first. What's also amazing is how true to the book the movie is. This feels rare these days and yet it works. I will be looking for more work from Kaui Hart Hemmings.

Better than the movie!

The characters were not endearing and other than they were going through a hard time we not relatable. There was not a lot of environmental descriptions and far to much pity partying.

Surprisingly funny despite its heavy subject material. I was in the mood for a novel set in reality, no magic, no experimental writing, and I was really happy with this choice. The dialogue is great and while the story is slightly predictable, it takes a few unexpected directions.

It's literally depressing 80% of the time. Part of me wanted to stop reading but then I couldn't put it down. I love stories based Hawaii

I love to read books that are set in the place I’m reading them, and I happen to be in the first place I discovered that joy many years ago- Hawaii. “The Descendants”, by Kaui Hart Hemmings, was a moving, quick read. The book is a portrait of a family in a defining moment- the letting go of a wife and mother who is in a coma. The journey of accepting the faults and flaws of one another and respecting the pain that others experience was fully realized and entirely real. There’s a rainstorm today, just as in the climax of the story. What a perfect day to stay in and read! I’ll have to catch the movie soon!

Hemmings tells the story of Matt King, a descendant of Hawaiian royalty (pre-statehood) who's dealing with the results his wife Joanie's recent boating accident and his larger family's desire to sell off the land that was passed down through the family.

Much of the story focuses on Matt's attempts to care for his two daughters, Scottie and Alex, who he never really took the time to get to know before.

The story is funny in parts, touching in parts. I enjoyed listening to The Descendants.

What do you do when your wife leaves you with two daughters you have never really known? Matt has to find out how to be a father to Scottie and Alex, plus make the three of them into a family again. You can't imagine how Alex grows up and handles this along with her family.

Deb F. / Marathon County Public Library
Find this book in our library catalog.

Characters feels real. Good writing. Keep the tissue close.

I've read Kaui Hart Hemmings from the beginning -- when "How to Party with and Infant" was a blog. She's a good, strong, insightful writer. This book, though disjointed, made funny and cutting observations on affluent, self-involved motherhood.

Another good book by Kaui Hart Hemmings. Her last novel, "The Descendants" was smart and knowing, and her latest, "The Possibilities" is equal measures sharp and tender. A master of contemporary characters, her prose flows with an effortlessness that makes everything seem immediate and real.

Five stars for the ending. Fresh concept of entering a cookbook contest with recipes based on friends' stories about difficult experiences. Four young women and one slightly older guy form a playgroup, meeting most often in a slightly rundown park. Supporting each other in friendship and parenting, mostly without much help from partners whether married or not.

This book grabbed me right from the start; not because it's particularly tense in terms of plot, but simply because the characters and plot were intriguing. I enjoyed the minor twists, and feel that The Possibilities would be a great book group pick, as readers would probably disagree with some of the choices made.

This book grabbed me right from the start; not because it's particularly tense in terms of plot, but simply because the characters and plot were intriguing. I enjoyed the minor twists, and feel that The Possibilities would be a great book group pick, as readers would probably disagree with some of the choices made.

Read from October 22 to 27, 2016

A quick read with laugh-out-loud funny and oh-so-realistic tales in parenting (and life). Mele's parenting group makes me want to find my own group -- I'm so jealous of her friendships with other moms.

I admit; when I read the synopsis, it DID catch my eye, but the first few chapters bored me. I would read it, but then would quickly lose interest and put it down, and find something else to do; which very rarely happens with me.

I found that the book only got interesting when Matt got to know that Joanie was going to die, because then I found myself 'pulled' towards how Matt handled the situation. Though I must say, the fact that he had to 'rehearse' almost everything he was going to say at the beginning was slightly annoying to me.

And then we have Sid. I couldn't stand the boy's guts, but then softened up to him as the story went on. He wasn't as bad as he was portrayed at the beginning after all. And Brian Speer... OH GOD, I HATED that man's guts when they confronted him at Kauai. I was expecting him to be more... expressive, I guess? I think I kinda understood Matt's feelings at that point; here was Joanie, head over heels in love with Brian, when he didn't love her and was just leading her on. I kinda understand Julie's feelings too, but to say that to Joanie and Matt at Joanie's deathbed was... a tad bit disrespectful, in my opinion.

But if there was anything that I liked about this book, it would be how Kaui described the sadness in the family. It wasn't sappy and all 'oh-the-calamity' kinda thing, and even Scottie was being very strong and brave about it. I liked how they each allowed themselves moments of sadness where they would cry, but they didn't go moping around about it, because frankly, there's nothing they'd be able to do anyway. You can't stop death.

Hysterically funny. A "Bonfire of the Vanities" for the mommy set.

When paradise isn't paradise. Great book.

The main story surrounds Matt's wife in an irreversible coma after a boating accident. Matt is forced to assume the parenting role for his two teen girls. As a back story, Matt holds the deciding vote in whether the family historical holdings in Hawaii are sold off or kept in the family, which is where the title comes from.