UNFAMILIAR FISHES

Sarah Vowell’s latest explores the history of Hawaii, about which I knew absolutely nothing (I’ve never even been there), so I can attest that it is definitely informative, at least for the newbie. It’s also, of course, entertaining—tongue-in-cheek but affectionate, funny but often poignant. It doesn’t have quite the offbeat passion and sharp focus of good old Assassination Vacation (a book I am apparently invoking often these days), but it’s less uneven and rambly than her previous effort, The Wordy Shipmates (which, despite some good wisecracks and a sound premise, I didn’t end up loving)—although in a lot of ways, it’s a natural extension of that book’s insights into American Christianity and imperialism. I think Vowell has pretty much guaranteed at this point that whatever she writes about, I will read.