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Fostering a deeper understanding of
personal transformation, social justice, and Hawai‘i

Koa Books' twelve titles have been sold to new publishers, and Arnie Kotler, Koa's editor-in-chief, has opened a freelance editing studio. The name Koa Books and seven of the books are now available from Chiron Publications. The other five titles are available from Bess Press, Haymarket Books, Duke University Press, and Punawai Press. Please click on the book covers below, and you'll be routed to each title's new home.

 

Inner Gold

Inner Gold: Understanding Psychological Projection

By Robert A. Johnson

Bestselling author of He, She, We, and other psychology classics, shares a lifetime of insights and experiences in this easy-to-read book on psychological projection — seeing traits in others that are, in fact, our own. Drawing on early Christianity, medieval alchemy, depth psychology, and the myths of The Flying Dutchman and The Once and Future King, he also explores the subjects of loneliness, fundamentalist religion, and the spiritual dimensions of psychology.

"The healing power of Robert's writing is palpable." —Marion Woodman

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Veterans of War Veterans of Peace Book Cover

Veterans of War,
Veterans of Peace

Edited by Maxine Hong Kingston

Bay Area Book Reviewers Award for
Excellence in Publishing

Since 1993, National Book Award-winning author Kingston has led writing-and-meditation workshops for veterans and their families. This book is the harvest of their work together, creative, redemptive storytelling — nonfiction, fiction, and poetry — spanning five wars and written by those most profoundly affected by these conflicts.

“Powerful and finely written” —Chicago Tribune

“No one I know personally has done more to help veterans bear witness to unspeakable experience than Maxine Hong Kingston.”   —Bill Moyers

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The Wisdom of Sustainability by Sulak Sivaraksa

The Wisdom of Sustainability
Buddhist Economics for the 21st Century

By Sulak Sivaraksa
Foreword by Samdhong Rinpoche

Sulak Sivaraksa is one of Asia's leading social thinkers and activists. In The Wisdom of Sustainability, he continues E. F. Schumacher's groundbreaking work on Buddhist economics. Emphasizing small-scale, indigenous, sustainable alternatives to globalization, Sulak offers hope and alternatives for restructuring our economies based on Buddhist principles and personal development. He is recipient of the Right Livelihood Award ("alternative Nobel Peace Prize.")

"Like Gandhi, Sulak offers great inspiration to a civilization that has lost its way."-- Jack Kornfield, author of The Wise Heart.

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That Day Everbody Ate

On That Day, Everybody Ate

By Margaret Trost
Foreword by Paul Farmer, MD

Following her husband's untimely death, Margaret Trost visited Haiti to heal her broken heart through service. Struggling to make sense of the extreme poverty and touched by the warmth and resilience of those she met, she partnered with a local community and together they developed a program that now serves thousands of meals a week to those in need. On That Day, Everybody Ate tells the story of her remarkable journey.

"This small, polished gem of a book is one compelling answer to many questions about how to inject meaning in our lives...." —from the Foreword by Dr. Paul Farmer

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Words of Wisdom by Lama Surya Das

Words of Wisdom

By Lama Surya Das

Renowned spiritual guide and author of the bestselling Awakening the Buddha Within, expresses his depth of understanding and highly nuanced humor in this collection of witty and inspired sayings.

A rich tapestry of insight gems and belly laughs, Words of Wisdom will leave you laughing, searching your soul, and asking for more.

"Lama Surya Das' books are a blessing on my bookshelf and a blessing on my heart."
—Marianne Williamson, author of A Return to Love.

Surya Das with Stephan Colbert
See Surya with Stephen Colbert

 

Not One More Mother's Child by Cindy Sheehan Book Cover

Not One More Mother's Child

By Cindy Sheehan
Foreword by Congressman John Conyers, Jr.
Introductions by Thom Hartmann and Jodie Evans

Essays and journal entries by Cindy Sheehan, on her occupation of the Bush ranch in 2005, the moment that reawakened the American Peace movement.

"There is a rhythm and tempo in her prose which recalls the great epic writers of Greece. She has a gift of candor and directness and epic simplicity, … a born writer."
—Dario Fo, Winner of Nobel Prize for Literature.

 

The Superferry Chronicls Book Cover

The Superferry Chronicles

Hawaii's Uprising Against Militarism, Commercialism, and the Desecration of the Earth.

By Koohan Paik and Jerry Mander

The authors and a team of attorneys, military strategists, and environmental activists expose in detail how Hawaii's interisland ferry was hijacked by neoconservatives with vast military ties and is, in fact, a prototype for America's sea-based military strategy. Without an Environmental Impact Statement and never approved by the people of Hawai'i, the 800-ton Superferry rode into Hawai'i on a wave of deception and corruption. The New York Times calls Jerry Mander "the patriarch of the anti-globalization movement." 

"Good for you—people of Hawai'i—who've raised the alarm, and to these authors for pulling back the curtain."—Bill McKibben, author Deep Economy

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Georgia O'keeffe's Hawai'i

Georgia O'Keeffe's Hawai‘i

By Patricia Jennings and Maria Ausherman

Full Color Includes O'Keeffe's Hawai‘i Paintings, Period Photos, & Letters from Maui.

For three months in 1939, Georgia O'Keeffe visited Hawai'i and painted the Islands' tropical plants and landscapes, capturing their essence and beauty. During two weeks on Maui, 12-year-old Patricia Jennings served as O'Keeffe's guide and companion, showing her the lush valleys and hills of Wailuku and the plunging waterfalls, lava bridges, and black-sand beaches of Hāna. The bond forged between the Hawai'i preteen and the American icon lasted a lifetime, and O'Keeffe's letters and paintings give us a view of the Islands through the lens of the great American artist.

"Interesting insight into an unexplored chapter in the life of Georgia O'Keeffe."
-- June O'Keeffe Sebring, niece of the painter 

 

Under Maui Skies by Wayne Moniz

Under Maui Skies
and Other Stories

By Wayne Moniz

Wayne Moniz, the "Dean of Maui Playwrights," offers seven tales of his island home, each in a different genre-love, detective, adventure, war, science fiction, and ghost stories, and a Western-"to preserve the memory of a time that is slipping away and to encourage action to protect Hawaii's unique land and culture." In 2005, Moniz received the Cades Award for Literature, Hawaii's most prestigious writing prize.

"One of the most engaging works of fiction to come out of Hawai'i in a long while."
--San Francisco Chronicle

 

 


 

Nation Within by Tom Coffman

Nation Within
The History of the American Occupation of Hawai‘i, Revised Edition

By Tom Coffman
Foreword by Manulani Aluli Meyer

Winner, Ka Palapala Ho‘okela Award for Excellence in Nonfiction

America’s long century of imperial adventures began with the illegal occupation of Hawai‘i. In Nation Within, journalist/historian Tom Coffman tells the heartfelt story of Hawaii’s resistance to annexation, both in Honolulu and Washington, D.C., and the pivotal roles of Theodore Roosevelt and others.

"The untold story of Hawai‘i, the history we were not given in school. … Sobering, and fascinating." --Howard Zinn


Daughters of Fire

Daughters of Fire

By Tom Peek
Illustrations by John D. Dawson

Tom Peek's debut novel picks up Hawaii's story where James Michener left off. Three Hawaiian women -- a young activist, an anthropologist, and an aging seer--- call forth their deepest traditions to confront an extravagant resort development. A visiting astronomer stumbles into their world, falls in love with the anthropologist, and enters a Polynesian realm of volcanoes, gods, and revered ancestors. But a murder on the lava and an impending eruption expose deep rifts in paradise.

"A page-turning thriller on the surface, a deep meditation on culture one level down, a spiritual tour-de-force at the core."
-- Arthur Rosenfeld, tai chi master and novelist

 

Voices of Dissent Front Cover

DISSENT:
Voices of Conscience

GOVERNMENT INSIDERS SPEAK OUT
AGAINST THE WAR IN IRAQ

By Colonel (Ret.) Ann Wright and Susan Dixon

American Booksellers Foundation for
Free Expression Book of the Month

During the run-up to war with Iraq, Ann Wright resigned from her State Department post, saying that without UN authorization the invasion and occupation would be a disaster. In Dissent: Voices of Conscience, Wright and Dixon tell the stories of government insiders and active-duty military personnel who also spoke out, leaked documents, resigned, or refused to deploy in protest of the Bush administration’s war policies
. “This illuminating and remarkably impressive book should be leaked into the government.” — from the Foreword, by Daniel Ellsberg .