Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen

Hawaii's Story by Hawaii's Queen is at once memoir, political testimony, and a sovereign's appeal to history. Written in a lucid, dignified prose, the book recounts the overthrow of the Hawaiian Kingdom in 1893, the Queen's imprisonment, and the pressures of American annexation. Its literary force lies in its fusion of personal recollection with documentary argument, placing it within traditions of anti-imperial witness, indigenous historiography, and nineteenth-century political autobiography. Lili-uokalani, the last reigning monarch of Hawai-i, wrote from the intimate authority of one who had inherited both the burdens of rule and the responsibility of cultural preservation. Educated, musically gifted, and politically astute, she had witnessed the increasing influence of foreign business interests and missionary descendants in Hawaiian governance. Her narrative emerges from dispossession, but also from a lifelong commitment to her people's sovereignty, language, and moral dignity. This book is essential for readers seeking to understand Hawai-i beyond romanticized images or colonial accounts. It offers a rare first-person account of empire as experienced by its victims, composed with restraint, intelligence, and unmistakable grief. Students of history, literature, indigenous studies, and political thought will find it indispensable.

Lili-uokalani (1838 -1917) was the last sovereign monarch of the Hawaiian Kingdom. Her rule lasted from 1891 until the overthrow of the monarchy in 1893. She ascended to the throne after her brother's death and wanted to give her people a new constitution, which was not welcomed by pro-American forces. As a result, they overthrew the monarchy on January 17, 1893. Although she was supported by her friend President Cleveland, who blocked the annexation of Hawaii, she lost support with the election of President McKinley. She created numerous memoir pieces in her later life, among which two most known works are "Aloha -Oe" and"Hawai-i's Story by Hawai-i's Queen."