Sorry about the delay in
Sorry about the delay in putting up my thoughts... I finished the book almost two weeks ago, so I will not be as lucid as I should be, but I needed some time to let it settle. A couple thoughts I have... I picked the book on my friend's recommendation, and a lot of that had to do with the controversy surrounding the book. So as I was reading it, I think I was looking for that a little too closely.
The ending of the book was a little too neat, and whenI finished it I was afraid she made those scenes more graphic to add more punch to her ending. On the other hand, I don't doubt at all that's why life growing up in Hawaii is like, but the fact that she included them suggests (slightly) that the books was written to be read by outsiders (like me). And I am also glad, as MJ said, that she didn't try to vindicate the obstacles. That would have been a disaster.
I'll write more later too