| | The Tattoo |  | Author: Chris Mckinney
Publisher: Topeka Bindery
Category: Book
Buy New: $22.25
Avg. Customer Rating:  20 reviews
Media: Library Binding
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 248
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.3
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.5 x 1
ISBN: 1417771437
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9781417771431
ASIN: 1417771437
Publication Date: April 2007
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Product Description
"A book about the sins of the fathers.' . . . A gritty, troubling book."-The Honolulu Advertiser "The other Hawai'i, the one tourists never get to see."-Ian MacMillan Ken Hideyoshi is the new guy in Halawa Correctional Institute. He's tough looking, a hard case, observes his cellmate Cal-the mute tattoo artist of the prison, a wife murderer. SYN, a gang symbol, is tattooed on his hand, and he has a Japanese emblem inscribed on his left shoulder. He asks Cal for a tattoo on his back, in kanji script, of Musashi's Book of the Void. While he is being worked on, he tells Cal his life story, a tale of hardship and abuse. Motherless, he was raised by a distant father, a Vietnam War veteran, in the impoverished hinterlands. In his teen years he hung out with the native Hawaiian gangs and was drawn into the Hawaiian-Korean underworld of strip bars and massage parlors. His ambition and proud samurai spirit seem, inevitably, to lead to his downfall. Chris McKinney is of Korean, Japanese, and Scottish descent. He was born in Honolulu and grew up in Kahaluu. He portrays the native Hawaiian experience from the inside, where children of mixed ethnicity grow up far from the clear water and pristine beaches of the rich visitors' resorts.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 15 more reviews...
 Amazing and captivating read September 29, 2002
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
I picked up The Tattoo after reading "The Queen of Tears", McKinney's second book, which was also great. The Tattoo, however, I could not put down. The illustrations of the complexities of race in Hawai'i, the depth of the characters portrayed in the novel and the profound humanity of the story all make you wish there were another volume to the story. And indeed there is, but it is only in the imagination; and in the ways you see yourself and the people you know through the eyes of the characters in this book. I am not from Hawaii, but having visited the book certainly revealed a side hidden from the view of most tourists. But much more important in my reading was the way I could relate to these characters--the way I found myself hoping for the best, but as often happens in the real world, having to settle for a less-than-ideal reality. This is perhaps what is most impressive about The Tattoo, the care you develop for the characters is not simply rewarded with mindless hopefullness, success and a "happy ending".
In my mind, McKinney has succeeded in developing a compelling, real story occupied by true characters, fictitious yet in many ways more real than we normally care to acknowledge in our daily lives. I found myself thinking and reflecting about the book for at least a week after I had finished reading it. It is a tragic lovestory, one of adventure, friendship and the complexities of family. It also, I believe, opens one up to the possibilities of life, both wonderful and heartbreaking. After all, what would one be without the other.
My thanks to the author for a book I'll never forget.
 Good, but not that good May 2, 2000
3 out of 6 found this review helpful
I know, I know...I wrote a really good review for the hardback copy (on accident) but then I had to think about it. I was going on the fact that I'm familiar with the setting and that I've never read a book with a real Hawaiian background. That's really the only good thing about the book. His character says words that don't fit. Supposedly he reads a lot of college level material in high school (things most people have not read!) AND sells coke on the side and lots of other illegal things. I don't know where he finds the time for that. Although his writing style is easy to read (for locals, anyway), it still needs some work. If your not from Hawaii, please don't think that everyone on our island is like his characters! Please no. To end on a good note, Chris McKinney does do a fair job in showing how parents affect their children's lives. Living on such a small island, its easier to see the connection from parent to child. Anyhow, for all those people who want a taste of the non-commercial side of Hawaii, this is a fair read.
great book January 3, 2001
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
Being local japanese born and raised in country, the main character Ken is eerily similar to my life. Not being able to relate to the stereotype mentioned in the beginning of the book, I felt as though my life experiences was being described through the narration of Ken's story. As for Mapuana's review, she is entitled to her opinion, but I am an example of someone who has been in jail and can read college level books. This is a piece of true Hawaii, the dark side, how noone wants to revel in it because it is not associated with the word paradise, and where atleast one person can say they have lived in the shoes of Ken Hideyoshi.
Hawaii born and raised March 5, 2001
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
This book was right on the money. Being born and raised in Hawaii, i know where this character Ken is coming from. This book just seemed all to real to me. The real Hawaii, which we kama'aina people see everyday. For anyone out there who wants to see how it really is growing up in Hawaii with a "local" family, this book is a must.
Powerful Read February 14, 2002
2 out of 2 found this review helpful
I was fortunate enough to have Chris in a class or two of mine at the University of Hawai`i. When I saw he had pusblished The Tattoo, I took no time to snatch it up. Growing up in Hawai`i and having a couple of friends who work in the prison system, I know this book rings true to life in the islands in a big way.Chris' writing style is highly artistic, painting vivid pictures of his characters, the areas of O`ahu, and the prison cell. The Tattoo is a must-read for anyone, and I know for a fact that the prison guards at OCCC have been telling each other they all HAVE to read this book!
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